


Eat Your Vegetables

by Zafona



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Adopted Sibling Relationship, Alternate Universe - High School, Anal Sex, Assumed Character Death, Bromance, Brothers, Child Abuse, Complete, Destiel - Freeform, Drama, Family, Funeral, Happy Ending, High School AU, Jam, Kidnapping, Love, M/M, Murder, Past Child Abuse, Past Torture, Self Confidence Issues, Self Harm, Sexual Content, Stanford, Statutory Rape, Terrible Parents, Vegetables, Wedding, almost not quite incest, eat that shit, family mafia moment, m'ang, old fic, there's a kiss, wild!Castiel, zafona's archives
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-08-27
Updated: 2013-09-09
Packaged: 2017-12-24 20:03:15
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 21
Words: 57,443
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/944067
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zafona/pseuds/Zafona
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dean runs away from home at a young age after a disagreement with his dad, but he's never found again. With heavy hearts the Winchesters decide to adopt another boy for their youngest, Sam, to be with, they never wanted their kids to be alone. Castiel and Sam grew up together, brothers and close friends but very different in mindset. Castiel is wild and hits up the bars with a fake ID, Sam visits libraries and does his homework. But they're both secretly hoping for their knight in shining armour, and one day, the same day, they meet him. On separate occasions both boys run into and fall for a guy older than them, short brown hair, beautiful green eyes. But in both situations he's the same one; Dean Winchester.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> I'd like to make a disclaimer here saying this story was written over a year ago and posted on Fanfiction.net. I've been slowly updating the stories I think are worth sharing on this site as well. Point is there are flaws in this fic and some parts need to be taken with a grain of salt. I'm going to explain some possible questions with the phrase: dumb luck and circumstance. If that isn't good enough let me know. I don't have time to re-write and edit this story between college and two jobs so I hope you enjoy it all the same! Thank you for reading and giving me a chance.

"Dean, eat your vegetables." John ordered his five-year-old son, a dark look on his face. They'd had this argument several times this week already and he was growing sick of it very quickly.

"NO!" Dean squeaked, shoving the plate away from himself violently. "I don't wanna."

John watched several peas bounce across the table followed by a slowly rolling piece of broccoli. His face was turning slightly red as he stared at them, tossing a look back at his kid. Mary piped in to ease John's rage a little, work had probably gone a little wrong today, she figured. "Dean, sweetheart, just eat them."

"No!" Dean shouted again, arms crossed defiantly over his chest, "They're yucky!"

"I don't care, eat them!" John growled back, shoving the plate to its original position. Dean shook his head and pushed them away again, earning another deep sigh from his father.

"Dean, if you don't eat your vegetables you won't get any pie." Mary argued with a condescending tone, watching Dean's face fall with horror.

"Then… Then I'll run away!" Dean countered; his pudgy face full with as much serious as he could fit in it.

John snorted, "Sure you will. Just eat them, or go to your room."

Dean stubbornly dropped out of his chair and stormed away, "I hate you!" He cried poutily, running up the stairs.

John rolled his eyes and exchanged a tired glance with Mary. They were both about to get back to supper when Sam suddenly decided to react to his older brother's yelling, the one-year-old flailed his tiny arms and screamed at the top of his lungs. Both parents cringed and mentally cursed as they decided who would tend to Sam's needs via rock-paper-scissors.

Several hours later Mary went to Dean's room to check on him, a little concerned since she never heard any ruckus up there. "Dean?" She slowly pushed the door open, being quiet just in case he'd pouted himself to sleep. Upon first inspection the room was dark and there were lumps in the bed but none of them seemed to be Dean's shape. She walked in and looked around, "Dean?" She asked again, louder this time.

John sat on the couch with a beer in hand, staring at the television blankly, it didn't matter what was on he just wanted to relax. His moment of peace was shattered when he heard Mary screaming upstairs, running back and forth up there and, by the sound of it, tearing things apart. "Mary?" John shouted, getting up and walking over to the staircase. "What's going on?"

"Dean's not in his room! He's not anywhere!" She cried down at her husband frantically, hurrying to another part of the house. John scrunched up his face and started looking on the main floor, thinking that Dean was probably hiding from them and just fell asleep.

After searching the entire house over twice and the backyard a few more, John called the police; his son was missing.

Months went by but the Winchester's never stopped looking, spreading their search further to other towns and surrounding areas; someone  _had_  to have seen Dean, they just had to. They looked and looked, waited for some kind of call but nothing came. It had been three years since Dean's disappearance and they had to accept that he was gone. A small funeral was held for him, immediate family was invited though many of them thought it was a waste of time to do it so late, in their eyes Dean was dead a long time ago. Everyone was dressed well but the Winchesters wore their very best, even buying a suit for little Sammy.

John stared down at the casket as they lowered it, tiny and empty. He hadn't even managed to find his boy to do him the respect of burying him, to get him out of nature's way and bring him home. John stood tall, holding Mary as they watched people toss dirt onto their first born, his grip solid and strong as she cried. It wasn't until her father came to see after everything was done that John had a moment for himself. He stepped beside the freshly moved soil and trembled, tears finally able to fall now that most of the family had departed and Mary had gone with Samuel and Deanna.

John fell to his hands and knees, an anguished cry ripping from his throat. He all but screamed, his hands balling into fists, leaving him with handfuls of grave soil instead of his little boy. "You don't have to eat your vegetables if you don't want to…" He stuttered, heart aching like someone had gone 10 rounds with it. "Hear me, Dean? You don't have to eat them… Just come home… Come home…"

"Daddy?" Sam whispered, just barely four years old and watching his father break apart, mumbling something about vegetables. He slowly walked to the grave stone set up and looked at it, everyone had been telling him this was his brother Dean and they kept saying he was going away. Sam wrapped his small arms around the stone as best he could, squeezing it lightly.

John, though wracked with pain, cleared his throat and asked softly, "Sammy, what are you doing?"

"Mommy said Dean was going away so I'm saying goodbye." Sam said with his cheek pressed to the cold slab. "Goodbye, Dean."

John reached over and pulled Sam into his lap, arms encasing his youngest tightly, head hung and resting against Sam's tiny frame.

In the next year John and Mary had decided that Sam needed a brother, they didn't want their kids growing up alone, it's why they had two in the first place. They adopted another child by the name of Castiel who was only a few months older than Sam; they couldn't have one of their own, it felt right to take him in, it felt better.


	2. Need A Lift?

_14 Years Later_

"DUDE!"

"WHAT!" Dean startled from the sudden shouting in the apartment, one of his roommates demanded his attention. "What the hell do you want, Jet?"

"Not much," Jet grinned widely and mussed up Dean's hair playfully.

Dean glared at the taller male un-amused. He'd known Jet for majority of his life; they'd met when they were like six or seven out in the grungy space between their houses. Jet had grown much taller and wider than he had, despite Dean's impressive stature Jet had managed to out do him. It wasn't so bad though, Jet's strength was something they could both depend on and thanks to him they were both alive now. But even though Jet was his best friend and they'd likely die for one another, Dean still hated the pesky 'little brother treatment' Jet pushed on him once in a while.

"Then why are you shouting at me?" Dean spoke, swatting Jet's hand away from him.

"Wanted to see if you were in the apartment." Jet surrendered his reasoning as he dropped onto the couch next to Dean, legs flying up and landing on the coffee table in front of him, or at least placed his heels on the cleanest space without knocking anything over. Relaxing wasn't as easy as 'just relax', it took skill and incredible knowledge of where everything was resting. Thus were the living conditions of three bachelors living together.

"How's work?" Dean asked casually, figuring he'd start a different conversation.

"Meh… Got laid off." Jet said as normally as he could.

"What! Again? Dude you have to stop punching your boss in the face!" Dean tried not to laugh.

"Whoa, whoa! For one," Jet lifted a finger toward Dean, "I would have been  _fired_  if I'd done that. And two," a second finger popped up, "That was my  _last_  job."

Dean snickered, "Fired and laid off, isn't that the same thing?"

"Shut up, man." Jet smirked, "Difference here is the company went bankrupt, everyone was 'fired'." He moved his fingers in universal 'quotations' motion. "I'll finally have a good reference."

Dean spoke at the same time as Jet with that last sentence; neither of them stopping to allow the other to speak first. "Well hey, at least you'll be able to collect EI."

Both men paused and looked at the other like his idea was a much better point than the one that they had made themselves. A nod and a look of 'not bad' crossing their features as they both turned and stared at the TV. "Why don't you try the library?" Dean offered after a moment of silence.

Jet shrugged, "I dunno, man. Library? Me? That'd probably be the quietest place I'd ever work."

Dean glanced at him, a grin stretching his lips, "But you'd be working there."

Jet laughed, "Yeah, not so quiet then, huh?" They chuckled together for a moment before quieting down and staring blankly again, it seemed that when they ran out of funny or relevant things to say they just sort of did that. It was nice a lot of the time, less bullshit that way.

"So?" Dean offered again.

"Might as well give it a shot." Jet gave in with a smile, pulling himself up from the couch.

The library wasn't too far off but Dean decided to drive anyway, he hopped into his car and scowled at it, something about it just bugged him. It was in great condition, well taken care of and it was gorgeous. But Dean felt there was a small hole in him missing; he wished he owned a muscle car. Dean slid his hand over the steering wheel; it was worn through with grooves where his hands sat. The interior smelled of him, a light musk, aftershave, and of course deodorant (spray or roll on, whatever he wore that day).

Jet dropped in beside him and slammed his door behind, "Drive man, quit molesting the damn car."

Dean raised an eyebrow and put her in gear, "Whatever you say… You realize who's driving your fired ass there, right?"

"Laid. Off." Jet pointed out distinctly.

They arrived at the library in no time at all, the two men walking into the building while shoving one another into the doorway. Dean glanced up at the counter and his jaw hung open with what he saw. A young man leaned on the front desk; his elbows planted firmly on the hardwood surface, body a smooth curve to long, elegant legs. An ass worth staring at in snugly fitting jeans, Dean swallowed as his eyes lingered on the swell of the other male's rear.

"Dude," Dean was startled when his friend nudged his shoulder.

"Yeah?" Dean looked up quickly.

Jet smirked, "Should we wait 'til she's done with him?"

Dean looked back at the scenario in front of him, rather than just at the young man perched against the counter. The librarian was busily searching through their database for some kind of book, Dean wasn't sure which one of course but he imagined it was something like Harry Potter. "Yeah, better do that."

"Thanks a lot," The brown haired male smiled and walked off into the mess of bookshelves, glancing over his shoulder briefly at Dean and Jet as he passed.

Dean took that moment to admire the youthful features, those gorgeous hazel eyes as they flicked up and down over Dean. "You go do your thing," Dean muttered to Jet as he wandered off after hazel-eyes.

He found the young man scanning the bookcases until his eyes shifted all the way up to the very top of it. "Crap…" he muttered tiredly. He was tall but he wasn't tall enough to reach it.

"Need a lift?" Dean smiled, walking up beside him.

Hazel-eyes looked at him, dragging his gaze over him briefly and laughed a little. "Uh," he chuckled again, "I doubt you could."

Dean snorted, "You insult me." He took a firm hold of hazel-eyes hips, finding he thoroughly enjoyed the firm feeling of them; the crease that led inevitably to something Dean wanted a taste of. He hoisted hazel-eyes up, hearing a definite 'ooph' from above.

"Th-Thank you." Hazel-eyes stammered as he was lowered back to the floor, a deep seeded blush in his cheeks. He looked at Dean a little differently, an interest lingering where it hadn't before.

"Dean," Dean smirked a little wider, "Name's Dean."

"Sam," Hazel-eyes said coyly, "Nice to meet you Dean." They shook hands, Dean finding that Sam's grip was much stronger than expected. "So uh, you don't seem like the library type."

"I'm not," Dean nodded backward, "My friend there needs a job, I'm moral support."

Sam raised an eyebrow, glancing back toward the counter, "Your friend, huh?" he smiled and looked back to Dean, biting his bottom lip for a moment and taking in the sight. Dean's shoulders were broad, his jaw firm and those eyes… Sam looked away in an attempt to hide the blush.

"Your cheeks are red," Dean pointed out playfully, "Are you embarrassed?"

"No, not at all." Sam straightened up and pretended like the heat wasn't burning his face alive.

"So uh," Dean looked down at the book Sam was holding, "Whatcha reading?"

Sam lifted the 4inch thick book, "Something for school," he waved it a little before lowering it.

"Ah, hate it when they assign reading like that." Dean's mind skittered through options of what Sam meant by 'school'.

"I don't mind, I've read it before." Sam shrugged,

"Really? Why?" Dean blurted before thinking, realizing by the look he received that Sam was the studious type.

"I like to read," Sam managed to say non-condescendingly.

Dean smiled, watching the strength in Sam's jaw as he spoke, the sparkle in those eyes. He reached over and stroked Sam's cheek, "You are… Very attractive."

Sam's face flushed even brighter, "What are you…" he shook his head, "What are you talking about?"

"What are you doing this evening?" Dean's charm was turned up to eleven though clearly that wasn't necessary with Sam. The blush in his cheeks was intense; Dean swore he could feel it from a few feet away.

"Not much, I uh…" Sam reached back and tucked his hair behind his ears quickly, revealing that they were just as pink as the rest of his face, "I'm caught up with studies so-"

"So how about dinner?" Dean smiled.

"Sure," Sam didn't hesitate, "When and where?"

"How about six at Charlie's?"

"Works with me," Sam pointedly checked Dean out up and down before walking past him, "I'll see you then."

"Sounds good." Dean returned the eye-sexing, watching Sam's careful stroll out of the library.

"Dude," Jet pat him on the shoulder with a smirk, "I totally got the job."

"No way, how?" Dean laughed.

"Easy, she takes me to her office and all I do is say one little 'hey' and she's all hot and bothered." Jet grinned wildly.

"So when do you start?"

"Well she said she'd call-"

"So you don't have the job." Dean smacked Jet's arm with another heartfelt laugh.

"Shut up man, it's in the bag." Jet joked. "So on the other hand, who was that?"

"Sam," Dean smirked, "Got a date with him tonight."

"You gonna hit that?" Jet glanced at the library entrance briefly.

"Sure as hell gonna try."

* * *

Long strides up the front steps and into the house, Sam was in a good mood. He couldn't believe the luck he'd just had at the library, a beautifully tanned and toned man picks him up by the hips in a  _library_! That never happens and especially not to Sam. He hopped up to his bedroom and opened his closet, pondering the right kind of outfit for this. _'What are you, a woman? Just wear whatever. Charlie's is a burger joint.'_  He scolded himself mentally.

"Why're you in such a good mood?" The low vibrating hum of his brother's voice rolled into the room, apparently Cas had decided to wait until he was right next to Sam to speak because he swore he could feel the baritone.

"I've got a date tonight," Sam smiled at his shorter sibling, he spotted the stubble on Castiel's face and stopped himself from making any kind of expression that Cas might read into.

"No way?" Cas said a little lazily, looking down at Sam's legs then up to his face again, "You? You actually bothered to take the time to go out and meet someone?"

"He met me, actually. At the library." Sam grabbed a nice shirt, not too nice but decent, holding it up to his chest to check it out.

"Oh, so nerd-alert then." Cas sounded disappointed as he dropped onto Sam's bed, musing at how their beds were the same size though Sam was much larger already.

"No, actually. He's… He's really…" Sam didn't know how to describe Dean, or he did but couldn't bring himself to say it out loud.

"He's really…?" Cas dragged out the words in hopes it'd coax Sam into saying it.

"Hot, he's really attractive and seems interested in me." Sam breathed.

"Ah ha! So you're going out with some sexy man tonight, that's some good news." Cas hopped up again, a cool smile on his lips, "I promise not to tell dad."

"Please, he'd kill me." Sam laughed a little, "Though in turn I could just tell dad about you and we'd be in the same boat."

"Yeah, dead." Cas laughed, walking out. "I'll leave you to it then."

Sam smiled appreciatively, going back to his wardrobe.

Around five thirty Sam trotted down the stairs and over to his parents in the kitchen. John hardly glanced up though Mary gave him her full attention. "Mom, dad," Sam started, "I've got a date tonight so I won't be here for supper."

"Ahhh, finally." John grinned, "Better wow this one, Sammy."

Sam furrowed his brow but nodded, "Anyway can I use the car?"

"Why?" John looked up again, skeptical.

"Well uh… My date's a bit older than me and I want to look a little more prepared." Sam explained.

"Older?" Mary questioned, a little surprised, "Where'd you meet her?"

"The library, actually." Sam smiled. "So can I take the car?"

"Nope," Cas' called as he hurried down the stairs as well, an oh-too-familiar grin plastered on that chipmunk-cheeked face of his. "Because I already called dibs."

"What!" Sam burst out, "But-"

"But nothing, Sam, I asked first." Cas grabbed the keys from where John usually hung them.

Sam looked at his parents for confirmation, getting a slight nod from John. "Seriously?"

"Cas has school business he has to take care of, his needs take priority over your date." John explained.

"School business my ass," Sam muttered, glancing over at Cas as his older(by two months) brother waved before trotting out the door.

"Good luck, Sam!" Cas called.

Sam rolled his eyes and strapped on his sneakers, he was going for a run. "I'll be back later,"

"Keep your phone on, dear." Mary piped in. "Don't stay out too late."

"Promise." Sam kissed her on the cheek and hurried out the door. He was half way down the block when Cas drove by in John's Impala, waving out the window at him. "Seriously! You had to drive around the block to rub it in!"

Cas grinned again and revved away, a distant honking saying goodbye to Sam one more time.


	3. My Date With Sam

"Alright I got a date, heading out!" Dean called over his shoulder.

"Wait wait wait!" Jet popped up from a mess of different wrappings and garbage on the couch, a game controller nested in his large hands and his hair a fuzzy mess from what Dean could only guess was one hell of a nap.

"What?"

"Where are you going?" Jet adjusted himself, a hand running quickly to flatten his hair.

"Charlie's diner, meeting Sam from the library." Dean shrugged, "Why?"

"Dude, bring me back a doggy-bag." Jet smiled, pointing a finger at his friend's face, "I love that place."

Dean grinned in return, he loved that he and Jet were so similar when it came to their tastes; hardly any arguments ensued between them unless it was something major. "You got it, man."

"Awesome, thanks pal." Jet dropped back onto the cushions of their rather run-down couch. Three bachelors living in the same space made a crazy big mess and, some how, they could all navigate it like professional explorers. It was proven in the fact that each and every one of them could wander out of their bedrooms half-drunk or hung-over and never once step on something or stub their toe or even trip. It could also be a shit-load of luck. "Have fun, m'ang!"

Dean couldn't help the stupid grin that continued to creep up his face, "Later, m'ang." He called over his shoulder as he strolled toward the door. 'M'ang' was a term they'd started using in high school, one of them had found it in a funny web-comic and couldn't help but mimic it. Dean remembered vividly the way Jet insisted that they call one another 'm'ang' instead of man or dude or whatever they used at the time. It stuck, mostly. Only the two of them dared call the other by it, often combined with a fist bump though they'd gotten pretty lazy with it.

"Hold on a sec," Gabriel walked over and leaned against the back of the couch, their other roommate.

Dean rolled his eyes and turned around, "Now what?"

"You can't just say 'I'm off for a date' like that, what's your pretty boy like?" Gabriel grinned.

"Pretty, can I go now?"

"No," Gabriel straightened up again and waved a scolding finger Dean's way. "Dirt man, give us some dirt."

"He's cute, alright? Blushes like crazy, nice hips and a gorgeous face. Puppy-dog eyes, you know?" Dean smiled, recalling Sam's features though mostly he remembered the beautiful curve of his body leaning against that desk.

"All physical, eh? You're screwed." Gabriel laughed, hopping over the back of the couch and dropping right next to Jet.

"What do you mean?" Dean furrowed his brow, curious now.

"I mean you met this guy in a  _library_ , you mook. He's not just gonna be some easy piece of ass to pick up." Gabriel glanced back again, "You're going to have to step up your game a little."

It was Dean's turn to smirk, "Did you not hear the 'blushes like crazy' part? He lit up after a simple compliment, a light touch here and there. I don't think he gets out much, or gets much in the ways of physical affection, I've got this one nailed."

Gabriel nodded, considering it. "Alright, let's bet on it." He looked at Jet, "Twenty bucks says Dean doesn't get any tonight."

Jet grinned wildly, "You're on, man." He looked over at Dean, "Text me about it."

Dean laughed, "Alright, I'll let you know."

* * *

' _Dinner and a movie, that's all he thinks it is, gotta find a way to get him… Shouldn't be too hard.'_  Dean thought to himself as he drove down to Charlie's diner, a nervous twitch in the back of his brain. He grinned to himself, remembering the deep seeded blush in Sam's cheeks when he'd picked him up, and even more so during their conversation. The guy was fucking  _hot_ , Dean had decided after feeling the firmness of those hips, the delicate hipline and creases leading his fingers down into sensitive territory. Sam would be an easy fuck, especially considering that 'school boy' persona of his.  _'I hope he didn't drive… That'll make going to the movie a little more complicated and impersonal.'_

Dean arrived at the diner and casually walked in, glancing around he spotted the taller male sitting in a booth facing the door, a bright smile lighting his features, those hazel eyes trained solely on him as he walked over. "Hey, Sam." Dean grinned, not bothering to take a seat just yet.

"Hi," Sam offered a smile in return, his fingers laced together elegantly. He looked good; Dean wouldn't deny that, in fact it was the main reason Dean was talking to him in the first place.

"So what're you having?" He asked, tossing his leather jacket onto his side of the booth.

Sam pondered for a moment, he'd clearly been contemplating this before Dean had arrived and even more obviously hadn't come up with an answer yet. After a moment he shrugged, "Chicken Caesar salad, and a soda please." He nodded decisively.

Dean smirked, "Gotcha," he headed toward the counter, making a mental note that Sam was a health-nut.

"Wait!" Sam's sudden outburst caught him off-guard, he took a gander backward again just in time to catch a brief look of panic on Sam's youthful face. "Not diet, I don't like the after-taste."

Dean nearly laughed at that, "Of course, no problem." He went to the counter and grinned at the girl behind it. "Hey Anna,"

"Dean, what's up?" She smiled brightly at him, she'd been one grade behind him in school and they'd had some history. Though mostly Dean remembered seeing her working here, always serving him his favourite food. "I'll take a chicken caesar salad, two cokes, and three bacon cheeseburgers."

Anna raised an eyebrow at him, "Dean, are you going on a diet or something?" She joked, punching in the three cheeseburgers with a snicker.

"Nah, I'm here with someone," He nodded back toward his date, her eyes scanning up to see who it was.

"You're here with Sam?" She asked curiously, "That'll be eighteen, thirty six."

Dean placed a twenty-dollar bill on the table and slid it forward, this time it was his turn to raise an eyebrow at her, "You know Sam?"

"Yeah, smart kid and straight as an arrow, well, you know, in the moral kind of sense." She handed the change over and leaned against the counter, "Yeah, he's quite the catch."

"You don't say…" Dean glanced back again, remembering the large book Sam had been trying to get at in the library.  _'He did say he'd read it before, on his own time too.'_  Dean had to pause and reconsider the possibility of how easy this Sam would be. "So, on a scale of 1 to 10, how would you rate my chances of hitting that tonight?"

Anna snorted, holding back a full on laugh "Is zero an option?" She giggled.

Dean furrowed his brow, "Really?"

"Yeah, he's a high class high schooler." She shrugged.

"Wait, he's in  _high school_!" Dean's jaw hung open briefly as he stared at her.

"Yeah, you can't tell but definitely in his senior year. Close to graduation, top of his class, very studious."

"I thought when he mentioned school he meant college or something…" Dean ran a hand down his face, looking back at his date again (who started to look concerned with how often he was being glanced at). Sam was still attractive; he was still a tall, toned, and adorable guy. Dean just hadn't considered the age thing; he didn't think there was a difference if there was one at all. "How old is he?"

Anna shrugged, "I'd guess seventeen or eighteen, not really sure." She handed the food over on a tray, "And before you go, what's with the three cheeseburgers? Your date eats salad and you pig out?"

Dean smirked, "One's for Jet, can I get a bag with that?"

She rolled her eyes, "Of course, here you go."

Dean snatched it and picked up the tray, "Thanks, see you later." He marched to their booth and put the food down, angling it so Sam's food was in front of him. "Dinner is served," he said with a happy sigh, sitting down in the booth.

Sam took his share and smiled, "Thanks," he popped the lid open and applied a small amount of dressing, mixing it up awkwardly with one of those plastic forks. "So… You've been here a lot?" he asked after a moment.

"Yeah," Dean shrugged, "I used to know Anna from high school, that and my room mate, Jet, and I come here for burgers a lot."

Sam nodded, peering down at Dean's three sandwiches, "And a lot of burgers, I guess." He chuckled.

"Well I'm not in the mood for fries today and they're just meant to fill you up the rest of the way so I figured a second burger would do the trick." Dean picked one up and smiled down at it, pleased.

"What's the third one for?" Sam ventured to ask.

"Jet, he asked for a doggy-bag." Dean shrugged, taking a rather large bite out of the first burger. They ate for a moment; Dean slipped his hand into his pocket, texting Jet.

**Dean: Not gonna happen, m'ang. Morally straight and properly.**

**Jet: Awww Dood! I just lost $20!**

**Dean: Sorry man.**

Jet growled and handed Gabriel the twenty, "Damn it…"

"Yes!" Gabriel grinned.

Dean looked up with another smile, "So, tell me about you?"

Sam glanced up from his salad, twisting his fork around in it for a second. "Sure, what did you want to know?"

"Well… What do you do? What's your passion?"

Sam smiled, considering it, "I plan on going into law once I'm done high school, looking at a free ride into Stanford."

"Like Stanford, California University Stanford?" Dean raised an eyebrow in surprised awe.

"Yeah," Sam laughed a little, his features brightening up, "I applied for it and it turns out I'm talented enough to warrant them paying for me."

"Wow," Dean grinned, "Colour me impressed. I wasn't exactly a 'good student' in school."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, Jet and I were in the same classes together and my god," he laughed, "The shit we did! I mean I feel pretty bad for some of those teachers."

Sam chuckled, "I couldn't imagine,"

"Good." Dean snickered, "But it wasn't all fun and games like that, he and I barely passed at all. In fact I think we might have been pushed through, by the end of it." Dean paused, briefly remembering how frustrated they had both been. "It wasn't easy for us."

Sam rested on his elbows, leaning forward a little, "School isn't for everyone, it comes a lot easier to some people than others." He looked down at his salad again, "I got pretty damn lucky, I guess."

"Nah, I bet you work for it." Dean grinned, "Studious and all that."

"Well I do spend a lot of studying, that's true." Sam nodded, "But I haven't really had any trouble with people in school."

Dean shrugged, "People weren't entirely a problem, I had Jet and he had me, basically all we needed. That and a bit of luck and good humour for the teachers." He finished off both burgers in the time it took Sam to eat 70% of the salad. He wanted to ask Sam about the high school thing, about other people he may have dated but he wasn't sure, in fact he wasn't even sure what he was doing at this point. Sam was intelligent, very. He was going somewhere, and he gave off the air of having some class. "You surprised me," Dean admitted after a moment.

Sam looked up, a little shocked himself by the words. "How so?"

"Honestly, and don't hate me for this," Dean grinned, "I thought you'd be…" He found himself hesitating on that last one.

Sam raised an eyebrow, "What? Easy?" his tone didn't hint at amusement.

"Well, yeah kind of. You were acting like someone who'd be easy anyway, in the library." Dean shrugged, "But talking to you now I can tell you're far from it. Sam," he adjusted himself in his seat, surprised by the strange feeling in his stomach, "I want this to be more than just me being a creep, I'm sorry about that."

Sam's expression was skeptical but it softened, "Well, as long as your opinion changed." He smiled, that familiar tint staining his cheeks as he glanced away. "I'm okay with it being… more."

Dean tilted his head to look at Sam's face better, "You're so shy, why?" He teased.

"I haven't exactly… had a lot of luck with dates." Sam admitted quietly, "Or boyfriends."

"What happened?" Dean raised an eyebrow, honestly interested.

"Well… Mostly because I don't put out right away, I think." Sam shrugged, "And a combination of other things, not always a lot of time, parents give me a curfew, and most of the time they end up being interested in my brother." He rolled his eyes with that last one, "Little jerk."

Dean smirked, "Little brother?"

"Nah, older but only by a few months." Sam shook his head, "He's smaller than me though, and a lot more… Out going I guess you could say."

"Well I like you better," Dean pat Sam's hand.

"You've never met him," Sam laughed, "I doubt you'd say that after, you kind of seem his type."

"What's that mean? I'm a littler jerk?" Dean sneered playfully.

"Well… no… Just…" Sam scratched his head awkwardly, "I mean, you and him seem to have similar tastes, that's all."

"Better look out Sam," Dean took on a serious tone, his expression matching, "I think your brother might have a thing for you."

Sam snorted, quickly covering his mouth as he laughed, "What?"

"If we have similar tastes then he must like you." Dean shrugged, lifting his hands defensively, "I'm just saying."

"Right," Sam chuckled; he couldn't stop the dorky grin on his face.

"So," Dean glanced outside, "Did you want to see a movie today or would you rather just stay here?"

Sam looked at the time and considered it, "Well how about we watch a movie and then go for coffee again after, talk about it?"

Dean nodded, "Yeah but how often do people actually talk about the movie when they do that?"

Sam shrugged, "Not many, but we don't have to just talk about the movie."

Dean nodded, "Deal, so next issue, what kind of movie?"

"Doesn't matter to me," Sam shook his head.

"Of course not but once we get in there you'll complain and-"

"Okay! Action." Sam interrupted with a laugh.

"Awesome, though you don't have to pick action because you think I like it." Dean felt mildly concerned until he saw the unimpressed expression plastered all over Sam's face.

"What, just because I like to study you think I don't like action movies?" Sam stood, gathering his garbage, "Sorry to disappoint you but I do."

"Not disappointed at all." Dean grinned, getting up from his side of the booth and tossing the last cheeseburger in the doggy bag. "Let's go, did you drive?"

"No," Sam looked like he was recalling an annoying memory, if his scrunched nose was anything to go by.

"Right well let's get going," Dean was partially amused by Sam's face but he figured pointing it out might get him an angry stare.

The ride to the theatre was fairly quiet until Dean turned the radio on, a catchy pop tune starting up immediately. Dean scowled and changed the station as soon as he could, "Damn it, Jet." He muttered.

Sam only snickered at him, a cute smile on his face. "Don't like pop music?"

"Nope, classic rock's the way to go." Dean nodded to himself.

"You sound like my dad," Sam shook his head, his words making Dean cringe a little, considering their age difference again.

"So how old are you, Sam?"

"Turning 18 in May." Sam said proudly.

"Ah, well I'm 22 so the difference isn't so bad." Dean said, relieved.

Sam looked at him curiously, "You were concerned about that? How old did you think I was?"

"I honestly thought you were in college, when you said school and pulled that huge book off the shelf and everything." Dean found a decent parking space, close to the doors.

"Are you disappointed that I'm a bit younger?" Sam looked a little nervous, the giveaway was in his eyes.

"Not really," Dean smiled reassuringly, "It doesn't bother me, so don't worry about it." He looked Sam over, watching the relief settle in his features again.  _'This kid has had some hard times with relationships… And he's not even an adult yet, what the hell is up with teenagers these days?'_  he couldn't help but think.

They walked into the movie theatre; Dean collected snacks even though they'd just eaten. Standing in the theatre Sam paused for a moment and pointed at one of the posters, "Dean, I know the movie I want to see."

Dean glanced over and saw the poster for 'This Means War', "Seriously?"

"What? Chris Pine and Tom Hardy are in it." Sam furrowed his brow.

Dean nodded, "I guess I did like Pine in Star Trek, alright fine let's go."

Needless to say they laughed throughout the film, it was a good balance between romance, comedy and action and in the end every body wins. Well, except the bad guy but they should never win. The movie ended without incident and they hardly talked about it by the time they reached the nearest open coffee shop.

"What did you want?" Dean said as he walked toward the counter.

"Vanilla bean…" Sam trailed off while watching Dean's face slowly contort in confusion. "I'll just… come with and order it."

"Good idea." Dean grinned.

They sat down again after getting their drinks, Sam's froofy and Dean's just black coffee.  _'Salad and silly drinks, oh boy.'_  Dean laughed to himself, smiling at Sam as the teen sipped it casually. The conversation started on the movie and after about an hour or so they found themselves talking about their childhoods.

"Seriously, where the hell did you meet someone like Jet?" Sam laughed.

"Someone like Jet is a nice way to put it," Dean snickered, "That living tank and I have been friends since I was like... Five I think. We met in our backyards and just kind of hit it off."

"Just like that? Someone who's as rough-and-tumble as the guy you've been describing got along with you right off the hop?"

"Well he made fun of me first but after about an hour we were like best friends." Dean grinned, "And you kind of know where that's gotten us."

"Right," Sam smirked, "The fights and the 'I almost died' moments every day. He might not be that good for you, you know." Sam was joking of course, but Dean felt defensive for a moment.

"Him picking fights and getting us into trouble was the least of it, Jet saved our asses just as often as, possibly even more than he put them in danger. And he wasn't always the one who got us into the sticky situations, so that means he solved more problems than he made." Dean smiled, there was no way he knew how to explain his best friend to Sam, Jet was a person you experienced more than heard about. How could he describe the times Jet had taken a hit for him, nearly died for him, and was always there no matter what? It wasn't possible, not at their current relationship level, anyway. "But what about you? You have a brother, right? What's your family like?"

Sam rolled his eyes, "Ah yes, my brother. Well actually he's my adopted brother, you'd never know we were related just by looking at us." His smile faded a little, "My parents adopted him a few years after my biological older brother died. I feel kind of bad to say this but I don't really miss my older brother, I never knew him. He disappeared when I was one so…"

"So there's no point in feeling bad about it," Dean shrugged, keeping his face calm as he spoke, "You have a brother, adopted or otherwise, so just deal with the things you know you have. No sense in worrying about what's gone."

Sam nodded, "I agree." The smiled at one another when a sudden loud ringing startled them both, Sam recognized the tune and fished out his cell phone. "Crap…"

"What?" Dean raised an eyebrow.

"It's my parents, one sec. Sorry." He turned away from Dean to make it a little less awkward, "Hello? Hi mom. Yeah I know it's past 11, sorry. ...I'm fine, really. Okay. ...Okay see you." He hung up and sighed, looking up at Dean guiltily. "My mom," he said again, just in case Dean hadn't heard.

"Got that, she want you home or something?" He joked.

"Yeah." Sam muttered sheepishly.

"Oh," Dean looked around, "Well I could give you a ride, where do you live?"

Sam fidgeted a little, "Could you drop me off a block away? My dad's kind of a… well he's a hard-ass when it comes to these things and I don't think he'd-"

"Appreciate his son in a gay relationship?" Dean finished the sentence for him, finding he knew where it was headed anyway.

"Yeah," Sam exhaled tiredly. "Sorry."

"It's fine, I respect the parent-rule thing." Dean got up and escorted Sam out.

Ten minutes later they were down the street from Sam's house, Dean parked and hopped out, walking around the car to Sam's side. "That was fun."

Sam nodded, "Yeah, I really enjoyed myself." He looked down for a moment then back up, his eyes meeting Dean's briefly.

Dean closed the gap between them and gently pressed their lips together, liking the feeling of the teenager as he gave in to the kiss. Dean wrapped an arm around Sam's back, hand finding its way into the shaggy brown hair to support his head. Dean waited until Sam relaxed, arms coming up and finding their way around Dean, hands landing in safe spots.

They made out for a few minutes, Dean finding it was all right to trail a hand down to the lip of Sam's jeans, hooking a finger into it. Sam's face heated almost instantly, pulling back a little. "Dean… Dean wait…"

Dean lifted his hands a little, innocently. "Sorry, figured I'd give it a whirl anyway."

Sam blushed and nodded, fishing out a piece of paper from his pocket and a pen, scribbling down his number. "Here," he offered it, "send me a message and maybe we can talk about going on another date?"

"I'd love to," Dean took the paper and shoved it into his pocket, "But first I'd like to ask you to be my boyfriend."

Sam's cheeks reddened further as he nodded quickly, "Yes," he said simply, mostly lacking the larger vocabulary he was used to having.

"Awesome, I'll see you later." Dean waved and hopped back into his car, taking off down the street.

* * *

Sam smiled, watching the man's taillights disappear around a corner and down the street. He sighed happily and jumped a little before running back to his house. Dean had been amazing, he was gorgeous and he was funny and he could actually talk to Sam. It was more than he'd hoped for, they had so many discussions and Dean had opened up to him. He smiled gleefully, trotting up the sidewalk; he noticed immediately that the Impala wasn't back yet. Of course, it was Friday night, there's no way Castiel would be back as early as 11:30pm on a Friday night.

"I'm home!" He called as he hurried inside.

"How was your date?" Mary smiled sweetly.

"Amazing," Sam smiled back before running upstairs.

Mary looked at John who only shrugged, "He's a teenager." Was all he offered her in response for Sam's hasty retreat.

Sam dropped into his bed and stared up at the ceiling, finding it completely impossible to wipe the smile from his face.


	4. Double Dating

Dean drives away from Sam's neighborhood, his mind drifting in and out of their conversations.  _'Smart kid, good looking, nice guy…'_  Dean contemplated the thought of their relationship, where it could go and other things like that. He hadn't been in a serious relationship in years, possibly ever. He'd approached Sam in the library for what he expected to be a quick fuck; clearly he'd underestimated the teenager's ability to say no.

He glanced at the time, still about twenty minutes to midnight, the night was still young, why not go to a bar? He shrugged and changed his course, heading for one of his favourites in the area.

Dean walked into the dimly light environment, his eyes trailing to the dance floor, watching several half-drunk young adults wiggle around like they knew what they were doing. He smirked to himself as he dropped himself at the bar, ordering a cold one from the pretty bartender. He let himself give the bar another look around, this time checking for other patrons in his current vicinity. It didn't take long for someone to catch his eye; a beautiful raven-haired male sat several stools to Dean's left, knocking back a shot or two.

Dean stared for a moment, watching the smooth way the other man's throat worked and the calm way he handled the burning alcohol, barely even a flinch. Bright, blue eyes drifted upward and caught his almost immediately, they trailed down Dean's body then flicked back up with a certain interest flaring behind them.

That was all Dean needed to hop closer, his smile widening as he dropped himself next to the pretty face, finding it looked a little more youthful up close. Of course, the fact that this guy had an impressive layer of stubble on his jaw told Dean enough, not to mention he was in the bar at all. No way this one could surprise him with the 'I'm a high school kid' thing.

"Dean." He started with an introduction, sticking his hand out to his interest; this guy was fucking beautiful, the subtle cleft in his chin, the shape of his cheeks and eyes, but mostly the soft look of his lips, full and pink and perfectly outlined by the unshaven hair.

"Cas," the guy replied easily, his voice rough and unique, sending a rush of blood from Dean's head to his other head.

"Cas, interesting name." Dean smiled, waving a hand toward the bartender, a motion she recognized as 'two please'. It wasn't uncommon for Dean to pick someone up at the bar; it was actually odd if he didn't.

"Don't blame me for it." Cas laughed a little though his words sounded as distracted as Dean felt, eyes still scanning over him like a desired hunk of flesh.

Dean matched the look, lust blowing out his pupils until he couldn't bear just sitting there anymore. He leaned forward and locked eager lips with Cas, the other man returning it immediately. Dean wrapped his hand around the back of Cas' head, pulling him closer and guiding him through it though it felt like Cas didn't need much guiding. He reached forward and placed a firm hand on Dean's jaw, the other trailing down his back and feeling the muscles tensing there.

Cas pulled back, his tongue making a quick swipe over his pinker lips to clean up any excess saliva. "Wanna go out back?" He asked in that gruff voice, a hint of mischief lurking among his words.

Dean couldn't say no, not really. Part of him, somewhere in the back of his mind, was saying that he couldn't do this; it'd be a horrible thing to do against someone like Sam or anyone. Yet he wasn't even sure what he had with Sam would really go anywhere or if it were to just fizzle out. Whatever his excuse deep down he knew he'd burn for this but Cas was just too… No one had ever caught his attention like Cas had, and Dean didn't want to pass it up. "You know I do."

"Great," Cas smiled mischievously as he stood, starting his sashay toward the backdoor.

Dean moaned lightly, watching that fine as slink away. He lifted his phone to quickly text Jet the good news.

**Dean: Hey man, get your money back! I'm getting laid tonight!**

**Jet: Hell yes!**

Jet turned to Gabriel, "Hand over the twenty bucks because Dean's getting some!"

Gabriel rolled his eyes, "Damn it…" he handed over the 20 Jet had given him, watching Jet's pleased reaction.

Jet paused for a moment and glared over at his roommate, "Wait a second, this is the 20 that I gave you, you still owe me from the bet."

Gabriel grinned wildly, "Damn, I was hoping you wouldn't catch that."

"Yeah and you wouldn't have told me, either." Jet snatched the other 20 for himself.

The alley behind the bar was dirty, but they didn't care. Cas' pants were undone easily, the young man dropping them without a second thought. Dean's hands were all over him, finding ever crevice and curve, grunting and groaning as they started to move. Within moments Cas was bent over the nearest surface, his hands pressing down on the cold metal as Dean's fingers dug into his hips, pounding his insides. "More!" He growled and gasped, a higher pitched whimper shuddering in his throat as Dean complied. "God!" Cas cried breathlessly, his body hot with desire and need, "Please! Oh…"

Dean loved the image of that beautiful man bending over for him, braced against a grungy dumpster and panting, begging him to do this. He reached around and found Cas' leaking cock, bobbing stiffly as he fucked him. Dean wrapped his fingers around it and started in on it, pumping it and listening to the whining gasps and groans he earned. Cas cried out again, his body shaking as he painted Dean's hand white, his hips bucking backward for harsher strikes against his prostate.

Dean moaned and hunched over Cas, thrusting quickly, milking himself limp until he was done. After a few seconds to catch his breath Dean straightened up again, pulling himself smoothly out of Cas' ass, earning another light mewl from the other man.

Cas leaned against the dumpster for a second before turning around to look at Dean again, "You're pretty good." He smirked though his voice was so relaxed that Dean figured it must have been more than a 'pretty good'.

"Yeah, you're not bad yourself." He responded casually, wiping his dick off with a bar napkin he'd snatched.

Cas looked down at the mess he and Dean had made of him and before he could say anything Dean knelt down and started licking it up off his thighs, leading up to his entrance. Cas shivered again and rested solely against the dumpster until Dean was done. "Okay," he sighed happily, "Forget what I said, you're amazing."

Dean grinned, "That's what I like to hear." He stood and kissed Cas again, his hands finding their way down to the other man's cock again and started to massage it. He started kissing down Cas' collarbone, listening to the hitches in his partner's breathing as he lowered himself further. He nipped at Cas' hipline; the soft crease seemed extra sensitive after their little activity.

"Dean, wait," Cas gasped, his hands finding Dean's hair to push his head back a little, "Do you have somewhere else we can do this?"

Dean smirked, "I have a car,"

Cas smiled, "So do I but let's do it in yours, I want your smell around me."

Dean figured he should probably be weirded out by that but coming from Cas, those brilliant eyes trained on him, he couldn't find the disturbed sense of mind. It was actually kind of sweet in the way he said it, a little needy and yet erotic all at once. "You got it, babe." Dean lifted Cas up who didn't hesitate to wrap his legs around Dean, pants and underwear hanging off his ankle. Dean usually parked in a covered space, not to mention it was past midnight, so who would care? He pushed inside Cas as he walked, angling Cas so every step would make him bounce just a little.

They reached the car and had hours upon hours of raunchy, horny sex. It was after 4am that they finally relaxed in the back seat, Cas laying on top of Dean and a little lower, his head resting on Dean's shoulder and his cheek pressed against Dean's chest. He inhaled softly before looking up, the moonlight catching the sparkling blue in his eyes at such an angle that made Dean do a double take.

For a moment Dean thought he could see something, something in Cas looked lonely, like all he'd ever done were rough fucks like this, like sex was only made for the physical euphoria. Dean wasn't sure where his mind was going with it but he started to go along with the ideas that began to flow, slowly kissing Cas again, slowing down Cas' response until it was passionate and deliberate. Dean's hands gently touched Cas' skin, learning it and memorizing the feel as he went along, his arms holding Cas in a strong embrace as they made-out. After several minutes of this Dean moved forward with it, softly stroking the other man's hair with one hand while the other slid down his backside to support him and pull him a little higher.

Cas moaned softly into the kisses as they grew needier and wanting. He tried to push it harder, like he was afraid to go slow but Dean would have none of it. Dean did everything he could to ease Cas into it, gently lower him into a warmer place and make love to him. Dean wanted to give Cas that much.

It took a while but eventually Cas drifted into it, crying out louder than he had before, his body trembling and shaking in a way he wasn't familiar with. They adjusted positions afterward, Cas once again on top, resting. His hand was up by his face and nestled against Dean's chest, eyes staring forward past and through it though he knew it was still there. His fingers curled into the shirt that Dean had never gotten around to removing, clinging there.

Dean's heart wrenched in place when he felt the slight movement of Cas' hand, what that little motion meant. He adjusted the arm that was under Cas up and around the other man, firmly holding him there.

"Why did you do that?" Cas broke the silence with a surprisingly strong voice considering how quietly he'd spoken.

"You looked like you wanted it." Dean replied, glancing down.

Cas paused and nodded, "I… I've never had sex like that before." He smiled to himself, rubbing his cheek against Dean's shirt, "It was… really nice."

Dean smiled, "I totally agree." He stroked Cas' side absently, feeling a bit drowsy though he kind of wanted to know. "You look my age maybe younger, how many dudes have you done it with?"

Cas shrugged vaguely, remaining silent for a little bit. "Since I started growing facial hair is when it started so… A lot." He fiddled with Dean's shirt nervously, "Dean, I should tell you something."

Dean didn't think it'd be a big deal, Cas didn't come off as 'hiding' anything so he saw no harm in replying, "Whatever you want, Cas. What's up?"

"I'm… not the age you think I am." Cas looked up, his eyes surprisingly large and worried.

"I'll bite," Dean hesitated but spoke anyway. No one with as much stubble as Cas could be any younger than 18, "How old are you?"

"I'm 17," Cas managed to prove him wrong with one phrase. "I'm in high school, graduating this year, but I snuck into the bar."

"Fake I.D.?"

"Yeah," Cas smiled a little, "I know a guy."

Dean just chuckled, he should've seen this one coming from his earlier luck but decided to disregard it. "Alright."

"So… are you mad?" Cas asked anxiously, his lips pressed together tightly.

Dean shrugged, "Doesn't change what we did, and technically you never lied to me about it so why should you be nervous? Cas you're awesome in bed and… Well I kind of want to get to know you better."

Cas smiled, relief written all over his face. "You mean it?"

"Yeah, we should definitely hang out. When you free?" Dean couldn't help but find Cas cute now, though he knew full well the guy was amazing in bed and adding cute to that messed with his mind a little.

"How about we sleep first and I'll let you know after?" Cas whispered, snuggling down against Dean.

Dean yawned and nodded, dropping his head down on seat again. They fell asleep easily, Cas was exhausted and Dean had had a long day already.


	5. Getting to Know Our Friends

Dean groaned lightly, he could hardly feel his arm; all he could tell was that something was on top of it. His eyes opened drowsily, focus slowly sharpening his vision to make sense of the extra smells and the sounds of breathing that he knew didn't belong to him. He smiled when he saw the slumbering form of Cas, seeing the youthful expression a lot better now than he had in the dim light of the bar. Back there… Cas looked more experienced, seductive and fucking sexy. Now he just appeared like a cherub, sleeping peacefully tucked in next to him.

Neither of them moved for a bit, Cas' first sign of life being his long and tired yawn before snuggling a little closer. Dean stroked his cheek, watching his features twitch briefly before relaxing again. "Morning," he said with a smile as Cas lifted his gaze, bright blue eyes scanning him briefly as if Cas was busy remembering where he was.

"Morning." Cas finally returned the smile and stretched, his lithe body arching perfectly against Dean's, each muscle tensing in turn until he dropped them back into a relaxing position. "What time is it?"

Dean shrugged, "Lemme check." He rummaged for his phone, fishing for it in the bundled mess of cloth on the floor. Lifting it up and fumbling it around clumsily, finding that he didn't have much dexterity just yet. "It's 11:34." He nodded, "Not bad."

Cas smirked and adjusted himself to lie over Dean's chest, looking down at him casually, "What time did you think it'd be?"

"I was gonna guess after 1 or 2." Dean grinned then glanced toward the front seat, "So how much of a hurry are you in?"

Cas shrugged, "Not, really. I'm good with just sitting here."

Dean was about to make a crack about Cas' seeming looseness in the bar last night and compare it to him now, acting like a cuddling teenager, but he remembered that one little movement last night; Cas' hands clutching him, clinging to him during their lovemaking. It wasn't just sex that time; Dean couldn't spin it that way even if he tried. He'd spent forever just learning the way Cas worked, the sensations he liked and what he responded to, but mostly Dean found that he just wanted to know Cas. Watching the way he moved, shifted and swayed with every touch was burned into Dean's retinas and he just couldn't get it out of his mind. And listening to the husky growling voice whine and whimper for him, begging and pleading for more and the softest mumbled phrase Dean could swear resembled three hefty words he used to yearn for.

"How about some music?" Cas' voice broke Dean's mental distance from the present time and hauled him back. Dean looked at the expecting eyes and nodded, grunting lightly as he pushed Cas off and sat up.

He fished through his cassette box as Cas peered into it, "Oh, no way!" the teen reached in and took one of the Led Zeppelin albums, Led Zeppelin IV to be exact. "I love Stairway to Heaven." He handed it to Dean with a smile, Dean who just stared down at him.

"You know Zeppelin?"

"Yeah," Cas looked down at the box with a strange longing, "My dad listens to a lot of this stuff and I just… I like music."

"So you'll listen to anything?" Dean raised an eyebrow as he started the car and popped in the cassette.

"If it's music." Cas smirked, "Pretty much the old stuff."

"Alright… How about this then…" Dean started to drill Cas on different trivia to see how much the teen actually knew. After about five minutes of this it was clear enough that Cas wasn't faking just to seem desirable, he really knew his stuff.

Cas sighed, "Feel better?" Dean nodded and Cas rolled his eyes, slumping back against Dean, fingers trailing lazily in the fabric of the other man's shirt. He frowned at it after a moment and tugged, fingers digging in, "Take this off already, I want to touch your muscles."

Dean smiled and sat up, pulling the shirt off over his head. He realized the car was full of their scent and reeking of sex. In an act he considered to be necessary, he cranked one of the windows open and shuffled down again. "There."

Cas sighed and rested his head against Dean's chest, tracing the different ridges and eyeing him, Dean wasn't sure what Cas was looking at exactly but his pupils were blown fairly wide for having just woken up. The dark haired teen adjusted himself until he was on top of Dean and moved in toward his neck, nipping at the skin and licking up the salty remains from last night. Dean shuddered, letting Cas trail wet kisses down his neck and along his collarbone.

"Interested in another go?" Cas breathed, lingering above Dean's chest with a smile.

Dean looked down at him and rolled his head around for a second, "Hell yes." He took a firm hold of Cas' hips and pulled him up further, his hand reaching around and prodding at the teen's entrance. Cas moaned, hunched forward against Dean's heated skin, their flesh mashed together stickily.

After another quick fuck the two relaxed again, Cas popping upright with a strange expression. "What?" Dean sighed with a smile, slightly concerned with the sudden urgency in Cas' movements.

"I'm starving." Cas said simply before pulling his clothes on, "Let's get breakfast."

Dean grinned and followed suit in dressing himself, "Good plan." As they shifted toward the front Cas noticed a paper bag and tilted his head with a curious look. He paused for a moment to peak inside after recognizing the logo on the front being a diner close-ish to his house.

"Hey a burger! Can I have it?" He looked up excited, "It looks like it was made yesterday."

Dean flinched, remembering that he'd promised Jet a doggy-bag from last night's date. "Uh, actually I bought that for someone yesterday." He laughed, scratching the back of his head nervously.

"Oh," Cas looked back at it, "Well he's probably pissed with you now." He tossed it back and hopped up front, buckling himself seamlessly. "Onward!" he smirked, "Before I implode."

"As you wish," Dean returned the grin with one of his own, throwing his car into gear and tearing off the lot.

Breakfast was simple, fast food joint with some of those cheap-o breakfast sandwiches. Dean had thought Cas might want to go to a real restaurant but thankfully, for his wallet's sake; the dark haired teen thoroughly enjoyed eating crappy cheap stuff. Dean watched those lips pass over the English muffin eagerly, taking in the look of Cas' face as he chewed and barely swallowed before taking another bite.

Cas paused again, his cheeks full and crumbs scattered along his chin, "Whuh?" he mumbled through the food.

"Nothing," Dean laughed, "What're you doing today?"

Cas swallowed and wiped his mouth, eyes focusing on Dean's, "Why?"

"Was wondering if you had time to come back to my place." Dean shrugged as if it were nothing, keeping an eye on Cas' expression.

A sly smile spread the teen's lips smoothly, "I'd say I have time, depends…"

Dean flinched when a hand gently caressed his thigh, slowly slipping up between his legs. Cas was good, he had to give the kid that much. And 'kid' wasn't really a good way to put it, Dean wasn't  _that_  much older than him, really. His mind was interrupted again when Cas' persistent fingers traced his junk roughly.

"…Is this was you had in mind?" Cas' voice was low but easy on the ears; Dean could listen to that gruff tone for hours.

"Yeah, that's exactly what I was thinking…" He spoke through an aroused groan, locking gazes with Cas as the younger male's smile only widened.

"Then I  _definitely_  have time to stop by your place."

Dean grinned and looked down at his food, "Guess we'll have to finish this quickly."

"Hey I'm half done, slow-poke." Cas retorted with a huff.

Dean laughed, "Nuh uh!" He tossed extra food Cas' way, "You have all that to finish yet." He quickly took a massive bite out of his breakfast, "Shee?"

Cas scoffed and tossed it back at him, "Dick!" he laughed, "I don't even like those things!"

They did eventually finish eating and high-tailed it to Dean's apartment. As he fumbled with the keys to get into the building, Dean found himself entirely distracted with Cas who had wrapped his arms around Dean's neck and ravished the man's mouth with kisses. Cas lifted one leg up and hooked it around Dean's hip, grinding himself up against the older man with subtle thrusts of his body. Finally the door was clicked open and Dean pushed Cas inside, nearly slamming the smaller male against the nearest wall to continue their make-out session.

Dean grunted a little, hefting Cas up to wrap around his waist completely and carried him to the stairs. He would've taken the elevator except their cheap-ass apartment building didn't have one. Luckily he was only on the third floor, but still.

They hit nearly every wall on the way up, Dean's hands stroking Cas' perfect ass, grasping at his thighs and adjusting his position, all the while enjoying Cas' hot and needy, breathy kisses trailing down his neck. Once outside the apartment Dean struggled to put the other man down, "Come on, Cas. My roommates are in there, we have to be a little civil until we get to my room."

Cas groaned roughly and pulled away from him, "Fine but you'd better fuck my brains out at least once today for this." He moved aside coyly for Dean's key, specifically watching the way he inserted it into the door, eyes shifting up to catch the dark desiring look those hazel orbs held for him.

"Doooood!" Jet's voice called instantly as soon as the door clicked, Dean shoved it open to see his friend lounging on the couch in front of the entertainment set up, his head drooping over the back of the couch to stare at them upside down. "Where have you been, how was your… night… out…" He slowed down and turned around properly to see Dean's company, realizing that this wasn't the guy from the library.

"Jet, this is Cas. We met at the bar last night." Dean silently appreciated how Jet refrained from saying 'how was your date' and opted for something less incriminating. "Cas, this is Jet."

"Nice to meet you." Cas grinned, recognizing that Jet was definitely Dean's 'best friend/bro', as it were.

"Likewise," Jet smiled back, his eyes squinted for a moment, eyeing the stubbled cheeks up to the piercing blue and dark, mussy hair. This definitely wasn't the same type as library-dude but he was just as much Dean's type as any. "So…" he trailed off, not sure how to proceed just yet.

"Also, brought your burger. It's a day old but here you go." Dean tossed the paper bag across the room, grinning as he watched Jet's face light up.

"Aw hells yeah!" Jet caught it and tore it open immediately, "Man I was starving!" He stuffed it into his mouth like he hadn't eaten in days, glancing up at Cas again briefly.

Cas knew 100% now; no one brought a doggy-bag for their roommate unless that person was a very close friend. And, judging from the sty of the place, they were bachelors living it up together. "You said 'roommates'," Cas looked up at Dean suspiciously, "Where's the other one?"

"Gabe's still in bed." Jet nodded down the hall though as if on cue the bed-headed male stumbled toward them, his mouth open wide with a yawn.

"Morning guys." He smiled.

"Dude, it's afternoon." Jet snarked with a grin.

"And yet you're awake… I'm confused." Gabriel smirked and dropped onto the messy couch beside Jet, his feet dropping onto the coffee table (whilst knocking several cans and other leavings off). "So who's your eye-candy today, Dean?"

"Ha ha," Dean laughed sarcastically with a roll of his eyes, "This is Cas, Cas this is Gabriel."

Cas gave a quick wave of his hand, "Hey, nice to meet you roommate number two, I'm Saturday's arm-candy."

Gabriel snorted a laugh, "Alright, I like this guy, he can stay."

"Like it's up to you." Dean smirked, his arm wrapping behind Cas' back and pulling him closer. "Anyway we're gonna head over to my room so we'll see you guys a bit later."

"Sure thing, man." Jet waved them off, looking back toward the TV and picking up his controller again.

"You're still on that level?" Gabriel muttered, bored.

"SHUT UP!" Jet shouted, "It's hard, alright!"

"Bet a monkey could do it better…"

Jet snarled and threw the controller, bouncing it right off his friend's head. "A monkey could throw shit at you better too, ass hat!"

* * *

Dean closed his door, flicking the lock as he turned to look at his guest, Cas swiftly undressing and tossing the garments to the floor, eyes lingering and all but saying 'come and get it'. Dean grinned with a hot groan and crossed the bedroom floor, scooping Cas up in his arms as he went, plunking his sweet ass down on the old sheets. They kissed and writhed together, Cas' hips bucking up, legs curling around the back of Dean and heels digging into his sides, fingers grasping at the back of a head, digging deep into the messy hair left that way after the night before.

Cas moaned deeply and slipped away from Dean, wriggling below the man's waistline and wrapping his lips around the half-hard flesh. His tongue stuck out further to help massage the blood-swollen weight further as he started to suck, tasting the sweat and excess from whatever they hadn't cleaned from yesterday and earlier today. He gasped and moved forward, sliding it further to the back of his throat.

Dean's fingers laced in with Cas' hair, gripping it tightly as he did his best not to thrust forward into the teen's mouth. Cas was amazing at this, especially for his age. Though his eyes were closed Dean could easily picture those beautiful lips, reddened and stretched around his cock perfectly like they were meant to be there. Cas' eyes closed with a pink blush on his cheeks, the image was topped off with the wet smacking noises he could hear from the action. It was more than enough to ease him toward the edge though he didn't intend to fall over it just yet.

Dean ushered Cas away for a moment before pulling him back up, kissing and biting at his lower lip tenderly. "You're really good at that." He mused.

Cas laughed a little but said nothing; instead he moved aside to let Dean get up, positioning himself accordingly; face down and ass up.

Dean gave a light 'ooh' at the view, taking in the sight of that hole, tight yet easily worked open. He fetched the lube from a drawer and covered his fingers with it, tracing the rim and pressing a finger inside Cas. The teen shuddered and moaned quietly into the sheets, slowly moving forward and back along with Dean's hand, hissing slightly when a second finger entered him but barely noticed the third. "I'm ready." He grunted, "Fuck me."

Part of Dean wanted to wait and do it slowly but the rest of his mind quickly snuffed that part out. Cas was someone he'd met at the bar, a fuck buddy. That's clearly how Cas saw him. Dean didn't hesitate further and pushed inside, completely losing his train of thought when the teen's warm ass was wrapped around his cock.

Cas pressed his head down into the bed, hands clinging to the fabric as Dean worked up a rhythm. First it was slow but they moved together, each smack together was a little harder, until Dean could pound Cas' ass with as much force as he wanted. Cas bit his lip, keeping the screams to himself though he couldn't help it when a few streamed out of him, crying out for more, harder, or just for Dean. The older man looked down with surprise at one moment, the way Cas pleaded for him, not for anything particular but just for Dean, needy, wanting, and damn near sad. He decided that even if Cas only wanted to see him as a fuck buddy he'd at least treat Cas decently, until they could figure things out between them.

They lay together, spent and exhausted, both running on fairly little sleep. Cas dozed lightly against his chest and Dean couldn't help but tuck the blanket in around him and pull him closer.

* * *

An hour or two of napping passed, Cas' eyes fluttering open. He looked up at Dean and smiled, seeing that even the slightest movement of his head had stirred Dean as well. "Hey,"

Dean grinned, "Hey," he kissed Cas' forehead and rested against the pillow again.

The silence between them was comfortable, like each understood the other without so much as a word between them. Cas tentatively put a ripple in their quiet waters with a softly spoken question, figuring that it wasn't such a bad idea to get to know Dean a little better.

"So, you and Jet?"

"What about us?" Dean looked down at those baby blues and couldn't help a smile.

"How long have you known each other?"

"Since we were like six years old or something," Dean looked back up at the ceiling with a reminiscent look in eyes. "I… When we met I was living in the same neighbourhood, our backyards were basically the same backyard." He lifted a hand and gestured like it was him, "I was just sitting there, kinda hurt and crying and he just sort of wanders over and drops down next to me. We sat in silence, aside from me crying, for like 15 minutes. And after that long he just looks over at me, that scrutinizing expression on his face, which I only just then noticed looked as beat up as mine did, and he says to me; 'You look like shit.'" He smirked at the memory, "I just stared at him and didn't reply. He stayed though, sitting with me in silence again, this time I had stopped crying. After over an hour I finally came up with a come back, 'No, you.' And that's all I said to him. We've been friends ever since."

Cas remained quiet, contemplating what he should say next, whether he should ask the questions he wanted to or if he should just leave it be. "Wow…" he looked up at Dean neutrally, "That makes absolutely no sense."

"What? Sure it does!" Dean shoved him playfully, "We insulted each other and became friends, the end."

"So then… Why were you two hurt?"

Dean shrugged like it were nothing, "We had abusive guardians, that's all. Being neighbours though we helped each other through it. If it weren't for Jet I don't think I would have ever made it this far."

Cas nodded, understanding somehow though Dean wasn't sure how much. "I'd like to meet him a little more some time," he smiled, "But I should really be getting home, you mind driving me to my car?"

"Oh! Yeah, I guess your folks are missing you, huh?"

Cas nodded again, "Yeah, probably." He knows they're curious and a little worried but they know that Cas always comes back. It's fairly common for him to be missing nearly all weekend, anyway.

"Well when do you think you'll be available again?"

Cas shrugged, "Tomorrow some time? Like in the afternoon so I can sleep in." he laughed.

Dean bobbed his head in agreement, "Definitely, I'll tell Jet that tomorrow afternoon you're coming down to hang out with us. He'll be excited."

Cas smiled, "Great," he yawned and stretched, his arms angled above his head before dropping back into the bed, "Guess I have to get dressed to go though, huh?"

"Not if you don't mind public nudity and getting arrested for it." Dean laughed, hauling himself up, "Your car's parked by the bar, right?"

"Right." Cas stood and started pulling his clothes on again, finding that he was getting really good at this.

In what felt like no time at all they were by the Impala, Cas climbing out and waving goodbye to Dean who drove off as soon as the teen was safe inside the car. Dean sighed to himself, thinking back on when he saw Cas in the bar and when he saw Sam in the library. Apparently he was terrible at telling how old someone was these days.

His ring tone tore his mind away from thinking long enough to see the call display; it was Sam. "Hello,"

"Hey, Dean. It's Sam." Sam sounded like he had yesterday, composed yet cheery.

"Hey Sam, how's it going?" Dean smiled though he knew Sam couldn't see his face.

"I'm pretty good, actually I'm free tonight and was wondering if you wanted to go for coffee again?" The nerves Sam felt came through a little in his voice over the line and Dean managed to pick up on it a little.

"Yeah, I'd love to. Pick you up at 8?"

Sam hesitated, "Well how about I meet you at the Twix Café at 8? My dad…"

"Oh right, he doesn't approve of this kind of thing." Dean smacked his forehead, "Right, got it. I'll meet you there."

"Great," Sam breathed a sigh of relief, "Can't wait to see you."

Dean exchanged a pleasant goodbye before hanging up and smacking the phone against his face several times. "What the hell am I gonna do?"


	6. Pushing His Luck

Just as Sam put his phone away and trotted down the stairs he had to stop and look at the time, it was way past mid afternoon and Castiel still wasn't home yet. The taller teen ran a hand up through his hair and sighed, aggravated, "Tch, school business my ass…" He grumbled, throwing on his thin over-coat. "I'm going out for coffee again," he called into the house, slipping his forever-growing feet into his shoes.

"On another date?" Mary crooned from the kitchen, walking over with a smirk on her face.

"Yeah," Sam ducked his head with a bit of a blush, re-tying one of the messed up lacing jobs on his left shoe, "I've got a good feeling about this one."

"Sweetie, don't try to push it." Mary warned in her mother-tone. "Remember, do things at your own pace and it'll be worth the wait."

Sam smiled, standing up again, "Thanks mom." He went to her side and gave a quick peck on her cheek, "Love you."

"Love you too, Sam." She stroked the side of his face briefly before hearing the familiar rumble of the Impala pulling up. "Cas is finally home..." She mused absently.

Sam wanted to point out that Castiel had been gone for almost 24 full hours and gets away with it while he gets phone calls asking when he'll be coming home after 11pm. It's a little tiresome but Sam figured that arguing over something like that would be very stupid, he knew why he received those phone calls and Cas didn't; Sam was the straight A student who might get a free ride to Stanford, he couldn't be getting into the same life-style that Cas lingered in and still get good grades. They were worried to an extent, of course, because Sam hardly ever stayed out that late on his own accord in the first place. But still, he'd like them to consider his safety and his well being without considering his future job choices.

The door swung open, Castiel walking in casually with keys flung around his finger over and over in circles. "Hey, guys." He smiled wide, his hair an awful mess and Sam could swear he saw dried come on parts of his face.

"Wow, that all you have to say?" Sam furrowed his brow, "Whatever, gimme the keys."

"Sure," Cas tossed them into Sam's hands, strolling past them with a little swagger in his hips, "But it's kinda low on gas."

Sam stopped before walking out the door with a flinch, "Wha- You son of a-!"

"Whoa whoa, mom's right there, man." Cas smirked, "Have fun, Sammy!" He trotted up the steps, "I'm taking a shower." He called behind.

Sam rolled his eyes, putting the keys on the rack next to the door, "Whatever…" He sighed, adjusting his feet in his running shoes, "I expected to have to jog anyway."

"Have fun, Sam." Mary smiled sweetly before heading to the stairwell, "Cas!" She shouted scoldingly.

Sam just laughed and ran out the door with a slight shake of his head.

"Yeah mom," Cas went back to the staircase to look at her. "I know I shouldn't have emptied it and I should have called-"

"Yes, you should have. Turning your phone off doesn't mean we don't worry," She frowned, flicking her wrist in a familiar movement, "Come here."

Cas hopped back down to her level to receive a hug, her vibrant hair smelling of shampoo and some cleaning solution. He inhaled deeply, nuzzling his cheek against hers. "Sorry, mom."

"You know we love you, Cas. Just… I hope you're staying safe."

"Always," Cas grinned as he stepped back again. "Promise I'll call next time, or at least leave my phone on."

"Alright, now go shower, you smell awful." Mary shooed him with a light chuckle.

"I'm going, I'm going!" Cas laughed and ran back up to his and Sam's shared bathroom, closing the door behind him. His smile slipped and he let his head thunk against the heavy wood, eyes closing tiredly. "God…" he huffed a laugh before straightening up again, slipping out of his sweaty clothes, "What the hell…"

He looked in the mirror as he passed it, a strange look in his eyes made him stop. He tilted his head and stared himself down for a moment, trying to make it out. Finally his face lit up when he got it, "Holy crap… I really like this guy." The realization scared him as much as it intrigued him, he knew the sex was good and figured that's why he decided to go to Dean's place afterward… right?

Cas shook his head and walked into the shower, deciding not to think about it. They'd exchanged numbers at one point between sex and driving and meeting roommates, and more sex, of course. At the time of the exchange they'd concluded that it was a mutual 'for more fun', they were fuck buddies and that's how they'd approach one another. Sure, they'd traded a little backstory and literally made love in the back of Dean's car but Cas knew better than to attach himself to that. He'd made that mistake before, wasn't planning on making it again.

Sam walked into the café, Dean looked up with a bright smile. "Sorry I'm late," Sam smiled back and sat down across from the man he'd been fantasizing about. "Ran into my brother on my way out the door." He wished he could have driven; it would taken so much time out of the travelling. He'd decided to jog to Twix Café because the car was empty. Granted he would have jogged anyway except it would have been less of a pain in the ass if he'd never known the car might have ever been an option. The coffee shop was much further from his place and took a lot longer to get to on foot; admittedly he probably should have taken the bus.

"Your brother, huh?" Dean thought about where he remembered dropping Sam off the other night and glanced up again, "Did you run here?"

"Yeah," Sam smiled innocently.

"You know I could have picked you up from where I dropped you off, right?" Dean raised an eyebrow at him.

Sam nodded, "Yeah but… I didn't want to make you go out of your way."

"Sam, we're dating now, remember? It's not out of my way if it's to see you. And if you didn't want me to drive you then why would you pick a place like Twix? It's so far from your neighbourhood."

"I know that but it… It's got a different feel to it than the diner." Sam shrugged, "I go to the diner with friends and stuff after school, not with my boyfriend." He nearly shied away from the last word but managed to keep his tone strong throughout. "Besides, I could have driven today if my brother hadn't driven the damn car empty."

"That brother of yours sounds like he gives you a lot of trouble." Dean laughed, recalling his own relationship with Jet though that was a mutual trouble-causing thing.

"Yeah, he does." Sam rolled his eyes, "We have to share a bathroom between the two of us and he always makes sure he's in there just as I get up."

Dean laughed, "That's not so bad, my friend Jet actually wakes me up and coaxes me out of bed just so I have to wait for him. He does it on purpose, literally."

"Jet's your friend's name?" Sam chuckled.

"Indeed it is," Dean grinned, "but don't feel bad for him, he's created the kind of reputation you'd expect would go with the name Jet."

"Bit of a rough-and-tumble kind of guy?"

Dean shook his head, "More than just that, Jet can be pretty brutal when he wants to be. He's a hell of a guy to have on your side in a fight, all I'm gonna say."

Sam shook his head with a smile, "Is he the guy with you at the library?"

"Yeah, that was him. You remember?"

"He did look pretty tough, I'll admit."

Dean looked down at the table for a moment, still grinning, "Yeah, can't believe that doofus even decided to apply with that place, glad he did though."

"Did he get the job?" Sam asked curiously.

"You know, I never asked him." Dean lit up at the prospect, "He was still on the couch this morning and when I left so I'm guessing he isn't working just yet. I'll have to ask though."

Sam nodded and looked over at the counter, "We should probably buy something…"

"I'll get it, what do you like?" Dean stood and headed toward the counter.

Sam opened his mouth briefly but paused, remembering his type of order and shook his head again. "You know what, I'll just come order it."

"Suit yourself." Dean smirked and walked beside Sam.

As they stood in line Dean figured he'd ask, "So you have a good relationship with your brother at least?"

"Yeah," Sam nodded, "I mean a lot of people think he and I wouldn't get along because he was adopted but actually it was perfect. I was hardly old enough to remember much, I know I had an older brother by blood but he's gone, you know? It's not like my adopted brother replaces him it just… It's just different, it's a little complicated."

"Complicated? Sounds it." Dean nodded, "Usually the whole 'adopted sibling' thing can be."

"Not like that," Sam looked at him, "Just the way he came to us is complicated. There's no way I could ever have bad feelings toward him, he's really a sweet guy just kind of a jerk."

"You're his little bro, right? Of course he's a jerk." Dean grinned.

"Sounds like you've got that big brother thing down to a science." Sam gave him a light shove.

"I guess." Dean laughed.

Their date was a hit just like last time, Dean was surprised in the type of behavior being with Sam drew out of him. The tall, model-esque shaped teen was not only gorgeous but witty, smart, and quite humble. He had standards and Dean was surprised that he met any of them. A twinge of guilt rolled in his guts though, as amazing as Sam was he'd still… An image of shocking blue eyes flashed across his memory and interrupted his train of thought. Sam was cute, he was brilliant and full of personality but something didn't spark between them like it had between him and Cas.  _'I'll have to end this…'_  He thought passively,  _'Right? This is so wrong… Better run it by Jet, just in case.'_  He decided, knowing he needed an outside perspective on the whole thing and who better than his best friend?

A ring echoed over them and Sam fumbled for his phone, "Sorry, that's me again…" He looked down at the number and sighed, picking up, mouthing 'I'm sorry' in Dean's direction, who only shrugged.

" _Sam?"_  Mary's voice chimed on the other end.

"Hey, mom." Sam looked away, a little embarrassed.

" _Sam, it's eleven thirty, your father and I were wondering if you were coming home."_

He closed his eyes for a moment but kept his sigh to himself. He wanted to ask about how Cas managed to walk in the door 24 hours later without so much as a scolding but decided against it. "Yeah, of course." He said instead.

" _Alright, see you soon, honey."_

"Bye mom." Sam put his phone away and looked up at Dean, his brow crinkled slightly. "My uh…" He wasn't sure how to finish that sentence but the look on Dean's face told him he didn't have to.

"Curfew again?" Dean stood up, grinning down at Sam.

"Yeah…" Sam looked down, "I'm sorry Dean," he stood up and shifted awkwardly, "I don't know what to say, here…"

"Don't worry about it, your parents love you, that's all." Dean started heading out the door, "I'll give you a ride."

"Love me huh?" Sam half scoffed as he walked after Dean. "I wish that's all it was."

"What do you mean?" Dean looked over the hood of the car as he fished his keys from his pocket.

"I mean they let my brother stay out all night and we're pretty much the same age but he doesn't get any flak for it. I guess it's because he sucks at school, or something." Sam just laughed again, "I mean, he's not stupid but he doesn't try."

"So he's got no future so they let him stay out all night?" Dean raised an eyebrow when Sam nodded. "Right," Dean chuckled as he hopped into the old thing, flicking Sam's door unlocked. "Sorry to say man but I'd rather get your treatment."

"Really?" Sam looked at him as he pulled the seatbelt around, "They just care about my grades."

"No, they care about your future. Your brother's missing the same kind of love that you get, For him they'll just be happy if he manages to get a minimum wage job, for you they expect something, they know you'll be worth something." Dean shook his head, "Nah, I'd rather be you. Better having a lot of rules knowing they care than them letting me do whatever and not having a clue about how they feel."

Sam sat quietly after that, mulling it over. He didn't say anything until they reached the same block as last time and Dean threw the car into park. "Dean.." Sam looked up, "I'm sorry if I sounded like a whiny kid-"

"You're frustrated with your parents and the seemingly unfair treatment, I get it." Dean smiled at him, "Don't worry about it." He leaned over and kissed Sam's cheek, which lit the teen's face up in bright red. "So tomorrow too?"

Sam sighed heavily, "I wish but they don't like it when we go out a night before school."

"So when can I see you? Next Friday?" Dan furrowed his brow.

Sam shrugged, "You could call…"

"I guess that'll have to do." Dean smirked, "Damn those rules suck."

"Right?" Sam laughed as he climbed out of the car, "Call me tomorrow night." He ordered, a light blush still staining his cheeks.

Dean waved, "Good night, beautiful."

Sam waved back and headed down the street, glancing back over his shoulder at the disappearing taillights. He sighed, fingers touching his cheek where Dean's lips had been, slipping down to his mouth. His heart was pounding in his ears as he bolted to his house, feeling giddy and overly excited. The door swung open easily and he closed it just as quick, leaning against it with a smile.

"You seem happy," Cas stood on the staircase in his pj's, the pants riding low on his hips though Sam could only tell because the crotch of them hung lower than usual, Cas' baggy long-sleeved shirt covered the rest of him.

"I am, very." Sam grinned, slipping out of his shoes gleefully and dashing up the stairs past his brother.

Castiel smiled and followed him up, "Date went well then?"

"Unbelievably." Sam dropped into his bed, flaked out with a warm fuzzy feeling all over.

Cas leaned in the doorway, "Well I have some news too," he pulled up Sam's desk chair and sat down gracefully, Sam only now noticing the light shade of pink on Cas' cheeks.

Sam sat up, "You met someone?"

"Yeah… last night at the bar I hit on this guy who turned out to be so… perfect. I mean he was so amazing in bed and we did over and over-"

"Let's skip the raunchy sex stuff." Sam cut in, adjusting his position to face Castiel properly.

"Well that's the thing," Cas lit up, clearly he'd been thinking about this for a while. "It was more than that this time… He stopped it after like the fourth or fifth time and started doing it slowly, carefully. I've never felt so…" He trailed off, not sure what word to use next.

"Loved? By a stranger, I mean." Sam put in curiously.

"Yeah…" Cas leaned back, staring up at the ceiling with starry eyes. "I guess… I mean not to disregard mom and dad or anything, or you, but I felt so wanted, so cared for… It's different when it isn't family."

Sam nodded, smiling vaguely, "I understand. I'm surprised… But this guy… is it like the others?"

"That happened once, Sam." Cas frowned, "It's just been about the sex for me since then. This guy… he did it first, he started all the touchy, emotional things first." He relaxed and let the fluttery feeling settle in him. "It was the best thing I've ever felt."

"I'm glad for you," Sam said warmly, "You know, just be careful."

"And what about you? That whole 'holding off the sex' thing working for you this time?" Cas cocked an eyebrow.

"As a matter of fact it is," Sam said proudly, "He hasn't pushed me past my comfort zone or asked too much. He's really understanding, and charming and I just… I think it'll work out this time."

"I'm glad." Cas grinned and gave one solid nod to show his approval, "Well sounds like we've got some good days ahead of us, our guys should meet sometime."

"I agree." Sam smiled, "Better get to bed before mom bugs us."

"Bugs you," Cas shrugged, getting up and stretching. "I could probably go out again right now if I wanted."

"Bull." Sam called as his brother strolled out of the room.

Cas didn't respond though he knew it was true, just because he mostly ignored the phone calls and whatnot didn't mean he never got them. If he tried to leave now he'd probably be grounded for a week. And that would just shoot a hole into his entire sex life at this point, can't have that. "Good night, Sammy." He chuckled, closing the door behind him.

* * *

Dean walked into his apartment and dropped next to Jet who paused his movie, brown eyes glancing up vaguely. "I sense you're about to ask me something…" He muttered.

"You can tell?" Dean sighed heavily.

"Dude, I've known you pretty much since I can remember anything, ever. Give me some credit here, I think I can tell when you've got something on your mind." Jet snapped a little, his expression varying between annoyed and concerned.

"Well you're right, obviously." Dean sat up a bit and ran a hand down his face, "You remember Sam from the library…"

"Yeah and then you bring Cas over." Jet nodded, "Lemme guess, you're dating two dudes at once?" He mused casually.

"Yeah, actually." Dean nodded, "But I don't know what to do about it… I mean Sam's like a model, tall, sexy, and really smart. I have real conversations with him, in depth and intelligent, and he's a really great guy. Then there's Cas who is dynamite in the sack, a face to die for, and I get a sense that his personality and sense of self run a helluva lot deeper than I've seen…"

"Personally, I think Cas is way closer to your type." Jet just tossed it out there.

"You think so?" Dean crinkled his brow.

"Dude, again; I know you. I've seen the people you get along with and I've also seen the people you  _really_  get along with. Cas is a party person with a rough background who needs something, something you can give him. Sam is independent; he's a thinker and a doer for himself. Enough said." Jet leaned back against the couch like it was a done deal.

"What do you mean, enough said?" Dean shook his head, "I'm not seeing the black and white case here."

Jet rolled his eyes and leaned forward again, "If I know anything about you it's that you need someone to take care of, you need someone who needs you just as much as you need them. Sam isn't like that, I  _know_  you see it."

Dean nodded slowly, getting the image Jet was laying out for him. "So…" he dropped his face into his hands, "Christ, you're right… What do I do?"

"You tell him."

"Sam? I can't just… He really likes me, it'd hurt him-"

"It'd hurt him more if you cheated on him with Cas." Jet pointed out, "And if you just passed up Cas then you'd be hurting in the long run. It's been like two days! Just fucking tell him, he'll live."

Dean knew Jet was right. It was obvious he was right, but Dean also knew that watching those big hazel eyes water with tears would suck just as much. "You're right, you're right… I just gotta let him down easy. What do I say?"

"Just whatever comes up, man. You can't rehearse this kinda stuff." Jet crossed his arms and sat back again, figuring the hard part of his duty to Dean was over.

"Yeah, good point." Dean hunched forward, "I should at least think of something to start with…"

"You'll forget it by the time you have to tell him anything." Jet shook his head, "I'd just go up to him and say the cliché line; 'We need to talk' or 'I have something to tell you'. You know, that sort of thing."

"Thanks Jet," Dean smiled at him, "I'm glad you're here."

"Where the hell else would I be?" Jet smirked, "Gotta steer your dumb ass right."

"Says the guy with a crazy long record." Dean shoved his friend over.

"And who's retard-self was I covering for half the damn time, huh?" Jet shoved back, a light chuckle in his throat.

"Alright, alright." Dean stood up, "You win. I'm gonna hit the hay and tomorrow sometime maybe I'll go and talk to him."

"Maybe?"

"Okay I will." Dean lifted his hands in defense, walking toward his room. "Night, Jet."

"Good night, man."


	7. What You Mean to Me

Dean had said goodnight to Jet and dropped down into his bed, staring up at the ceiling. His mind lingered back to Cas and how they'd spent so much time in this ragged-excuse for a mattress. He furrowed his brow, someone like Cas shouldn't have to do it in a crappy, run-down apartment, he deserved better. Dean shook his head, yes Cas deserved better but that didn't mean he went out of his way and looked for good locations. The teen wanted people more; it didn't matter where he was. Dean closed his eyes, wondering what it was like being that way before he realized that he was the same. He'd done Cas in the back alley, he'd done him in the car, and of course back here, in a space that Dean didn't consider good enough.

Suddenly his phone seemed to itch at him, he wanted to talk to Cas and he wanted to do it now. Dean fumbled for the device and clumsily hit Cas' numbers; it'd be more than 24 hours since they had met though to Dean it felt like so much longer. He listened to it ring, once, twice, and then a click and some shuffling.

"Mm.. Hello?" Cas' gravelly voice came across as groggy.

"Hey sleepy beauty, did I wake you?" Dean smiled

"Dean? What the hell are you doing up? I'd have thought you'd be unconscious." Cas laughed, more rustling, Dean figured getting comfy in his bed. "And it's 'sleeping' beauty, dumbass."

Dean grinned, somehow very relaxed and glad he'd called. "And why would you figure I'd be unconscious exactly?"

"Well we did a lot of fucking, at which time you were the one plowing me which takes a lot of effort. I didn't think you'd done it that often in the span of a day and kinda thought you'd be tired." Cas' tone was a little smug though Dean knew he was teasing.

"And you aren't tired?" Dean poked back, "You're the one who kept dozing off in between."

"Power naps, my friend. I know how to rejuvenate in between fucks." Cas laughed on the other end though it slowed down. "Uh… Dean?" He sounded shy, a tone Dean wasn't sure suited him.

"Yeah?"

"Can I ask you something?" Cas wasn't just shy about this he was downright timid and uncertain, nervous and anxious all in one go.

"Of course, you can ask me anything, Cas." Dean spoke softly, trying to coax the teen to talk a little further past his insecurities. If Dean knew anything about teenagers it was that they liked to back out of things like this.

"I… I wanted to know what I am to you." Cas paused though he quickly shifted on defensive gears, "I mean it's fine whatever the answer, I'd just like to know if I should continue on 'fuck buddy' status or… otherwise…"

Dean sat up, he wasn't stupid; just because Cas said 'it's fine whatever the answer' didn't mean that it was actually fine. It was in the way he said it, quickly making sure that he didn't look like an idiot either way. "What do you think I'll say?" Dean said with a little bit of a smile, wondering if he could figure out what Cas thought of him through the answer. Of course it wasn't about what Cas thought of Dean, it was about what Cas thought of himself. The teen's answer would be based on whether or not he thought he was good enough or worth being anything more than a random sexual evening.

Cas was quiet on the other end long enough that Dean had to say something, "Cas, you're beautiful to me. I called you tonight because I wanted to hear your voice, I needed to. If you don't mind being with an older guy, would you go out with me?"

Cas' breath hitched and hiccupped, "Yes," he mumbled with a stressed edge to it. Dean recognized the tone; he didn't need to wait to hear the light sobs to know Cas was crying.

"What's wrong, baby?" Dean spoke sweetly, not able to wipe the smile from his face.

"I-I'm just…" Cas sniffled and took in a shaky breath, "Really happy."

Dean closed his eyes, "I wish I were there right now, I'd hold you until you stopped crying."

"I'm okay," Cas sighed lightly, a small laugh trailing his words. "So… I'm free tomorrow…"

Dean smiled though his mind clicked back to Sam.  _'I'll tell him after my date with Cas.'_  He decided, "Sure thing, wanna do breakfast? Or lunch?"

"Well how about we sleep in and then send me a message?" Cas chuckled, "Though lunch sounds good, not much of a morning person usually."

"I can understand why," Dean joked, "You're just awful first thing."

"Shut up!" Cas laughed, "I'd hit you if I could."

Dean snickered and leaned back again; glad to hear the spunk returning to his boyfriend. That thought made his mind stumble; Sam was also his boyfriend, technically. He'd asked Sam out first, so right now he was two-timing both of them.  _'No worries, Dean. It's not like they'll ever meet. Sam's too straight laced and Cas is so… He's a party kind of guy; I met him while he was illegally drinking in a bar for pete's sake. Not Sam's kind of person.'_  He thought, waving the idea away.

"So I'll see you tomorrow?" Cas asked, double-checking.

"Definitely." Dean smiled, "Sleep well, Cas."

"You too." Cas quickly hung up and squealed, despite the time. "Sam!" He flopped out of bed and bolted down the hall, shoving his brother's door open.

Sam sat upright, hair mussy and eyes barely focusing, "Wha? What's going on?" He looked around vaguely though he couldn't quite see right, just yet. "Are we being attacked?"

"By who?" Cas paused then shook his head, "Whatever. Guess who just called me?"

"The mother ship," Sam yawned, "You're finally going home, E.T." he rolled onto his face, exhausted.

Cas flinched at that one, "Uh…. Ouch, Sam…"

Sam's eyes popped open and he sat upright, "Wait, you're really standing there…" He blinked a few times, "And you're Cas…"

"You were dreaming about E.T?" Cas snickered, "Seriously?"

"I watched some alien movies recently and- Shut up, just tell me why you're waking me up." Sam blushed and waved his brother on.

Cas sat on the edge of Sam's bed, still smiling; practically watching the gears tick away in Sam's head.

"Oh my god…" Sam pressed his palm over his mouth, "I just called you an alien, didn't I? I'm so sorry Cas-"

"It's forgotten, don't worry about it. Anyway, guess who called me?"

"Your 'friend'?" Sam motioned with his fingers, guessing out of his ass at this point.

"Boyfriend now," Cas squeezed his eyes shut with joy, "He just called me and asked me out!"

"That's awesome," Sam smiled, a little surprised. "Finally settling down, are you?"

Cas sighed lightly, beaming. "I don't know, maybe. He's different… I feel different when I'm with him."

"Then don't let go of that one," Sam pat his back, "If he's treating you decently, more so than your other flings, then I'd say give it a shot. What have you got to lose, right?"

"Right." Cas grinned, "We're going for lunch tomorrow so I don't think mom and dad'll freak out about school being the next day and everything."

"You're golden, just remember to come home and they'll be cool with it." Sam added.

"Right, right. Well I'll let you get back to E.T."

"Shut up," Sam shoved him, laughing. "Good night, Cas."

Cas waved and trotted out the door again, practically skipping.

Sam shook his head and dropped back into his bed, he still couldn't believe he'd just told his adopted brother the mother ship was coming to bring him home. And he'd pretty much called Cas an alien, what the hell was wrong with him? He looked at the time and groaned after what he saw, it was so late already but talking to Cas about settling down and having a boyfriend made him want to talk to Dean. He bit his lip and looked at his phone.  _'No!'_  He rolled over again, grumpily.  _'You met him, what, two days ago? You can't call him like that after two days! Especially since you saw him earlier today, it looks needy.'_  He furrowed his brow and curled up, ignoring the mental cues to call for the better part of an hour.

"Crap…" he rolled over again and grabbed his phone, sending a text instead.

 **Sam:**  You up?

He stared at the screen for a while, waiting for a reply. "Of course not." He sighed and put it down again. As soon as he looked away he heard the familiar vibration and short ding.

 **Dean:**  Yeah, why are you?

Sam smiled and sat up in his bed, wondering if he should call or just send messages. Of course while he considered it the phone rang, he answered immediately, "Hello?"

"What's wrong, Sam?" Dean's voice rolled over into his ears and was a surprisingly good cure for his spiking loneliness.

"Nothing, really." Sam started though he heard a light huff of laughter.

"Then why are you awake? It's freaking late already." Dean rustled over the other line, "Something's bugging you."

"I just…" Sam ran a hand down his face, "My brother recently got a boyfriend and has been squealing over it, he's so happy right now and I'm glad for him, he's never settled down with anyone before…"

"What's this got to do with you?"

"I know him, he'll be awesome in a relationship and if it would ever end he'd be the one pulling the plug on it. I guess I'm… jealous."

Dean raised an eyebrow, "But you've got me right now, so why would you be jealous?"

"Because I'm the one who's always dumped." Sam sighed, hunching forward.

Dean flinched and rubbed his face, knowing full well what he'd be doing tomorrow. What could he possibly say now that wouldn't end up being brought up later? That wouldn't be tossed out as a lie soon as he told Sam about Cas?

"I've always been…" Sam's breath was shaky as he continued; he could feel himself growing a little more emotional with each word, despite how hard he was trying to stop himself.

"It's because you have high standards, Sam." Dean spoke tentatively.

"You say that like you've considered it." Sam gripped the blanket wrapped around his legs, fiddling with the fabric anxiously.

"Well yeah, I'm not sure if I told you this already but when I first asked you out it was because I thought you'd be easy. You definitely aren't, and that's fine. I've found more in you than I was looking for, and that's not a bad thing." Dean was treading cautiously, listening for any hint of a mistake in Sam's tone.

"So you wouldn't leave me just because I haven't put out yet?" Sam asked softly.

"No, what kind of creeps have you been going out with?" Dean almost sounded insulted.

"Pretty bad ones, apparently."

"What happened?" Dean frowned; Sam could hear it in his voice.

"Guys from school, some others too… I've gone out with a lot of people but every time I…" he choked on a sob, losing his composure, "I'm not what they were looking for. I've even been left on the side of the road outside of town."

"Who did that?" Dean growled, "I swear I'll-"

"It doesn't matter who, Dean." Sam interrupted, "I just want to know you wouldn't do that…"

"Sam, I swear I would never leave you on the side of a road, I wouldn't ever leave someone because they didn't have sex with me. I asked you to be my boyfriend because I wanted to get to know you, not because I wanted to keep trying to get into your pants." Dean said evenly.

Sam laughed a little, something Dean was glad to hear. "I'm still kind of surprised, most of the people I go out with want me in their pants, not to be in mine."

"Sam you need to work on your judge of character." Dean smiled, "It kinda sucks."

Sam exhaled with a bit of a chuckle, "Yeah, it kinda does."

"Alright, well you sound tired so you'd better get some sleep."

"Yeah, okay."

They finished the conversation there and finally earned their rest after a long day, Dean feeling like he'd done something right in the middle of doing something wrong. Though he couldn't help but wonder how he'd explaining going from 'helpful boyfriend on the phone' to 'I'm dumping you.' Trying his damnedest not to think of the heartbroken expression he was going to get when he talked to Sam tomorrow, Dean fell asleep.

* * *

"Can I go for lunch?" Cas leaned over his father's shoulder, his big smile right next to John's face.

"You want to go out again?" Mary sighed heavily, "Cas, can't you spend one day here?"

"It's just for a little while, I promise." Cas clasped his hands together, looking at her pleadingly. "Just like a two hour lunch and I'll come right home."

John snorted a laugh, "Right, and when have you ever 'come right home'?"

"Last week," Cas informed him, "Remember when I was sick and came home early from school?"

"Yeah… And the school called to make sure that you had made it back safely, two hours before you actually showed up?" Mary added with a cynical smile.

Cas' expression faltered from confident to caught red-handed for a moment. "Please?" He dropped to his knees, hands clinging to John's sleeve. "Please can I go?"

"You come back any later than two hours you're grounded," John poked his nose, "I mean it."

Castiel nodded, "Yes sir, no later than 2 hours." He gave a quick salute before glomping the poor man. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" He squee'd before bolting to the door, his phone in hand.

Sam smiled, set up at the table with that week's and possibly the next week's set of homework. "I'm glad he's doing this," He muttered as he looked back down at the jumbled pile of notes.

"He always does that." John looked up, face screwed up in confusion.

"Well today he's got a date." Sam grinned, that same grin he always gave his dad when there was something John didn't know and Sam did.

"A date?" Mary scurried over, "Are you sure that's what it is?"

"Yeah, he woke me up last night to tell me about it." Sam looked over at her, a hint of annoyance in his tone.

"Oh my goodness, why wouldn't he lead with that? Of course we'd let him go if it were a date!" Mary huffed, frowning over at John who could only shrug.

"My guess," he lifted his newspaper up, "He doesn't want us knowing it yet. Either means he's not sure about them or he doesn't think we'll like them."

Sam nodded, "Nail on the head, dad."

"I'm sure whoever she is we'll like her." Mary got up and headed back to the kitchen to bring out their lunch.

Sam wanted to point out that the 'she' was the part where Mary and John would be wrong but he decided that telling them anything about it might be cause for Castiel to do the same with his secret. He just smiled oddly and went back to his books.

* * *

Cas ran down the street where Dean started driving alongside him, "Need a lift, sweet heart?"

Cas looked into the car and grinned, "You come by this way often?" He hopped inside and leaned over to kiss his man.

Dean smiled back, "Nah, just when I know there's a hot ass heading toward the same location I am, might be a chance I could drag it into my car."

They went toward Charlie's diner though Dean remembered the waitress knew he'd brought Sam the other day, which led to him veering off to a different parking lot. "What's up?" Cas tilted his head, "I thought we'd go for burgers?"

"I decided I want pizza." Dean shrugged.

"Ooh, dangerous man changing his mind last second." Cas mocked playfully. "Alright, pizza it is then."

They seated themselves, a booth as Dean had insisted. Cas rolled his eyes and dropped in with him, "Why a booth?"

"What, you have something against them?" Dean raised an eyebrow.

"I've… always had a thing with enclosed spaces." Cas shrugged.

"Claustrophobic?" Dean looked surprised, "Really? But this isn't even closed in…"

"It's the high backs and the wall on one side, only one way out, even less if you're the one by the wall with someone next to you." Cas pat the bench he was sitting on, "But I'm alright now so don't worry about it."

Dean nodded, "Alright. Do you know where the fear stems from?"

Cas laughed a little, sounding almost bitter, "From what I've been told it stems from my birth parents."

Dean stared at him for about five seconds to let that sink in, "Birth parents? So… you're adopted?"

"Yeah," Cas shrugged, "But I can't remember much from before I was so really it doesn't bug me much."

' _Weird, hearing about and meeting adopted people twice in one weekend.'_  Dean thought briefly before touching Cas' hand, "So did your birth parents… You know, die?"

"Not from what I've heard, actually my dad says they've been in prison." Cas looked down at his hands as they fiddled together, "What about you? How were your parents?"

"Well remember when I said guardians last time?" Dean shrugged, "I was kind of adopted too, sorta."

Cas lit up, "Really?"

"Yeah… more like abducted actually." Dean shrugged, "off the street."

Cas furrowed his brow, rolling his hand over and taking Dean's firmly, "Did you want to talk about it?"

Dean wanted to turn away and say no, but then again he'd been asking Cas questions and it was only fair to answer a few. "I guess if you have any questions…"

"Well, when did it happen?"

"I was five years old." Dean took a quick breath. "I said 'I'll run away' to my dad when he told me to eat my vegetables and my mom said if I didn't I wouldn't get dessert. They didn't think I would, but what does a stubborn kid do? Exactly what he said he would, so I ran away. I can't remember how long I went for but I ended up in a scuzzy neighborhood where a man picked me up and brought me home…"

"Is that so bad? Didn't he bring you to the police, reporting a missing child and all that?" Cas pushed after a moment of silence, watching the flux of emotion on Dean's face.

"No, actually. He hid me in his basement until everyone would have stopped looking for me."

"That's so awful…" Cas shook his head, "I'm glad you had Jet…"

"Well I didn't meet Jet until a year later, Alastair didn't let me out of the house until then." Dean sighed heavily, letting himself feel a little less over-taken with grief. "But yeah, I'm glad I met Jet at all, even if it were after a year."

"Last thing you told me was that you two helped each other out a lot." Cas smiled, steering the conversation away from something that seemed to be like a knife's edge to Dean.

"Yeah, with everything. He was my sort of… wall, I guess. My safe place." Dean's smile looked heavy as he thought back, "Considering the neighborhood I was brought up in, we saw a lot of fights and a lot of other, ugly shit. Built like a tank, fights like a man possessed, and would do everything in his power to save my ass. Jet's my best friend, almost died for me several times. And likewise, I'd do the same for him. When one of us was down in the dumps, looking for an easy way, the other would either kick your ass or comfort you until things looked a little brighter." Dean wiped a stray tear from his eye, laughing light-heartedly. "Jet did that a lot for me, now that I think about it."

Cas nodded, smiling as he watched Dean's recollection appear on his face and in his eyes. "I'm still amazed that you two are so close."

"I can't imagine life without him, really." Dean grinned.

"I'll have to tell him how cute you are when talking about him." Cas smirked, glancing at the time and looking for the waiter.

"Gotta be somewhere?" Dean asked curiously.

"Well my dad wouldn't let me out of the house unless I was back after two hours, on the dot." Cas sighed, "So I guess coming over to hang out for today is kind of out of the question…"

"Damn," Dean scratched the back of his head, "Well I'll just have to let the guys down easy, then."

"I'm sure they'll be devastated." Cas rolled his eyes, still smirking.

"Too meet my boyfriend? Of course." Dean laughed, "They'll be so upset that I may have to come by your place with them later."

Cas shook his head with a chuckle, "I can imagine how that'd go; dad figures out why you're there, suddenly a wild shotgun appears and you guys would be running for the hills. He'd shoot your tires and so forth…"

"Aw man, he'd go for a man's wheels? That's just sick…" Dean shook his head, receiving a light punt from Cas under the table. "What?"

"That's what you got out of that?" Cas laughed, "My dad would kill you dead." He took on a hint of a gangster accent as he made a gun with his finger and thumb, aiming at Dean's head.

"I'm sure he would," Dean grinned, placing a hand over Cas' and lowering it, "But I think you're worth it."

Cas blushed and looked away, speechless.

Dean reached over and brushed a hand over Cas' cheek, "You're beautiful, you know."

Cas looked back, a sparkle shining around the blue in his eyes, "And you're more than I could have asked for."

Dean smiled, "I'm glad."

"I know it's only been a day and a bit but I… I want you to know that you mean a lot to me, I'd like to get as close to you as Jet is, if that's possible." Cas whispered softly.

"I guess we'll have to find out," Dean ignored a light blush in his cheeks as he spoke, his face burning a little hotter than usual. "But for what it's worth, you mean a lot to me, too."


	8. Dean's Decision

Dean dropped Cas off after their pizza lunch, feeling pretty good about himself. Though he was left with one thing burning in the back of his mind; he really wanted to see Jet. After going on and on about the guy Dean realized he missed him.

The apartment door swung open as Dean strolled in, looking over at the couch where he expected Jet to be lounging. To his surprise the area was clean, garbage had been picked up, old food tossed out and the coffee table had been washed. Dean sniffed the air, finding that it had be sprayed with some air freshener, and he saw that the throw rug had been vacuumed. He looked around, finding that the hardwood and tiled areas had been swept  _and_  mopped. The whole place smelled amazing, actually. "The hell…?" Dean muttered, wandering toward the kitchen area.

"Hey m'ang." Jet called from where he was wiping the counter.

"Did you do this?" Dean gestured to the cleanness though it looked like he was just waving his hands around.

"Yep." Jet didn't look up as he scrubbed some unidentifiable gunk from the countertop.

"In the last two hours?" Dean walked up beside him.

"Well yeah…" Jet looked over, glancing past Dean and furrowing his brow. "You said you were bringing your boyfriend home…" His expression flattened into a very unimpressed look, "Which I've now noticed that you have not… What the fuck, man?" He shouted.

"Dude, I didn't know you'd actually  _clean!_ " Dean shouted back, flailing his arms a little bit to gesture toward the clean again.

"I had to! Before you left you were all 'he deserves better than this' at which time you kind of looked at everything and kicked over a stack of beer cans that Gabriel had made into a pyramid. Which, by the way, he actually took back to get some money for." Jet rubbed his temples, "So where the hell is he?"

Dean looked at his best friend with turned up eyebrows, "Man, you didn't have to do all this."

"Yeah, I did. So where is he?" Despite the good thing Jet intended to do for Dean he still sounded madder than a hornet.

"His dad wouldn't let him out for lunch if he hadn't promised to be back in two hours." Dean pouted, "So basically not today."

"Dad, huh?" Jet shrugged, "You've been dealing with a lot of 'dad said no' lately. Weird, isn't it?"

"Kinda," Dean smiled, "Though for Cas it's fine."

Jet's expression softened, "So you really like him?"

"Yeah, enough to tell him a bit about Alastair."

"Really?" Jet's eyes widened, a slight amount of concern trailing behind the shock.

"Yeah, really. Just that he abducted me from the street and held me in his home for a year, I may have also mentioned how I had been beaten up when we first met…" Dean shrugged again, brushing it off.

"Beaten up's a little understating it," Jet grinned, "I'm pretty sure you had broken ribs and I'm positive your leg was twisted the wrong way."

"Nah, my shoe was on backwards." Dean laughed.

"Right, and I must have imagined the fucked up way your knee was perched." Jet rolled his eyes sarcastically. "Or maybe that was me?"

"Whatever," Dean shoved him lightly, "So you almost done cleaning?"

"Yeah, no thanks to your sorry ass." Jet shoved back before going back to the stubborn stuck-on goop on the counter.

"I can't believe you managed all this in two hours…" Dean looked around again. "It's awesome…"

"Started as soon as you took off, pretty much flipped off the couch and hauled Gabriel's ass out of bed to help me out. The hardest part I think was getting Gabriel to do anything," Jet laughed. "But let's try to keep it this way for when you really do bring him over so I don't have to do it again."

"Yeah, good thinking." Dean stopped as he headed toward the kitchen's exit, "Thanks, man."

"Like I said, I had to."

"Not just the cleaning, I mean for everything." Dean looked up, fighting the weird lump in his throat.

Jet looked up, actual fear plastered on his face, "What happened?" He asked immediately, dropping the cloth and walking to Dean's side.

"Nothing, just, like I said, I was talking to Cas about stuff and you came up a lot."

"That's all?"

"Yeah," Dean looked away for a second, "It might sound stupid but after I talked about a bunch of things I kind of… Missed you. Sounds dumb, right?" He flinched when he felt strong arms wrap around him, a much larger man holding him tightly. "Jet…?"

Jet was quiet for a bit, head resting against Dean's, eyes closed. "Yeah, it sounds stupid." He said solemnly, "But that's only because you think it's dumb to miss me." He squeezed Dean again and stepped back, hands on his shoulders to continue to hold him still. "Dean, you know me. I don't think I need to explain it at this point."

Dean shook his head, "No man." He wiped his eyes again, not sure when those tears got there. "Thanks, really."

"Don't mention it," Jet dropped his arms with a smile and looked back at the glob on the counter again, eyebrow twitching agitatedly. "Fuck it, I'm leaving it there."

Dean laughed and went to grab a butter knife, prying the sticky thing off after a few moments of trying. "Done."

"God damn it all…" Jet frowned, "Seriously?"

"Yep. Games?"

"Hell yeah." Jet followed Dean to the couch, stretching his arms as he went. "You know you're going down, man."

"Whatever." Dean snorted.

The door swung open again, Gabriel strolling in with a new pack of beer and several bottles of the sweetest alcohol he could find. "Hey dudes!"

Jet looked over, "Ah, good you remembered my shit this time."

"Had to, you said you'd punch me if I left the beer behind." Gabriel went to the kitchen to toss the stuff in, "So… No Cas?"

"No Cas." Dean shook his head.

Gabriel pointed at Jet and laughed, "Ha! You cleaned for nothing!"

"If you make a new mess I'll kick your balls." Jet turned back to the television as the game lit up the screen.

"Dude! Don't threaten another man's balls!" Dean nearly laughed as he scolded his friend.

"You're right, except Gabriel's more like a turd so it's fine."

"Hey, I resent that." Gabriel huffed as he hopped over the couch, squeezing in between them.

"Not to be old fashioned to say this but you resemble that." Dean chuckled, shoving Gabriel against Jet who promptly shoved him back in Dean's direction.

"Yeah, yeah, real funny boys." Gabriel grabbed a third controller, "Mario kart?"

"You know it."

"Sweet."

* * *

It was later when Jet looked up at the time. They'd stopped playing games and drank a few beers. He eyed Dean suspiciously, "So?"

"So what?" Dean looked up.

"I'm guessing since you left to see Cas you never went to see Sam in between." Jet raised an eyebrow, "Isn't there something you should settle?"

Dean sighed and sat forward, "Yeah but... You made it sound so easy before. Sam's independent and I need someone who needs me but I think Sam needs me too."

"How do you figure?"

"Just the conversation we had the other night, he messaged me and I got the vibe he wanted to talk so I called. He told me that he's been through a lot of different people, pretty sure they were guys but I'm not positive. They all dumped him because he didn't want to have sex right away. Teenagers are messed up man." Dean sighed again, groaning angrily.

"We were like that." Jet laughed at him, "Dude, we didn't give some people the time of day unless they'd at least give us a blow-job."

"Yeah well it looks different from the other side I guess." Dean shrugged, "And if you'd ever meet him you can't tell him that."

"Won't matter, if you don't tell him I will." Jet took another swig of the beer in his hand.

"About high school stuff?" Dean furrowed his brow.

"No, about you and Cas." Jet looked over at him, "You can't have both, man. If you don't tell him, I will."

Dean could see Jet wasn't screwing around and nodded, "Alright, I'll tell him it's over."

"And?" Jet pushed.

"And about Cas." Dean sighed again, "Happy?"

"Not until you do it." Jet gave him the 'shoo' gesture, "On with you."

"Alright, alright." Dean hesitated but stood, heading toward the keys hanging from the rack. At least he'd only had two beers in the span of three hours; he wouldn't be drunk trying to explain this.

* * *

Sam started when his phone began to ring, he was still at the table though now John had gone off to check something at the shop and Mary was sitting with him instead. They both looked at one another before Sam picked, "Hello?"

" _Hey, it's Dean."_

"Hi, what's up?" Sam got up from the table, heading toward the stairs.

" _We need to talk…"_

Sam froze and leaned against the stairwell wall, his limbs growing stiff. "Okay… About what?"

" _I'm coming to see you, meet me where I usually drop you off."_

Sam bit his bottom lip, his heart wrenching along with the rest of his insides. He'd heard something like this before, 'we need to talk' or 'it has to be in person', though those usually came from the girls he'd dated. "…"

" _Sam?"_

"…Yeah…" Sam went back toward the entrance, "I'll meet you there." He hung the phone up before he heard more than he wanted to, pressing the back of his hand against his mouth, eyes squeezed shut and praying that he was wrong. "I've gotta go for a minute." He called as he pulled his shoes on.

"Where to?" Cas popped up from the living room, his hair freshly washed from a shower and ruffled messily. "Can I come?"

"Just down the block, and no." Sam walked out without another word, bolting to where he remembered being picked up, watching for a car he recognized.

Dean pulled up and Sam climbed in, "Hey, Sam."

"Enough with that, what is it?" Sam sat facing him, the stress evident on his face.

Dean swallowed, ignoring the ugly pangs in his gut to the best of his ability. He was doing this because it was better for both of them if it ended now; Cas was the one he wanted. "Sam… there's something important that I need to tell you-"

"Just… Say it." Sam interrupted, the pain already settling in his eyes.

"We're over." Dean cut right to it, Sam could see it already and it'd only torment them both if he dragged it out.

Sam nodded slowly and looked away as he realized tears had welled up. He opened the car door and climbed out, starting to walk back down the sidewalk toward home. At least this time it was on the side of the road a block away from his house…

"Sam!" Dean yelled after him, "Sam come back for a minute, okay?"

"Why!" Sam spun around hurt and pissed, "So you can explain to me how you're an asshole and lied to me over the phone last night?"

"No," Dean ran up beside him, "I didn't lie last night, okay? I wouldn't leave you because of that. I… I met someone and realized that they're very important to me."

Sam sniffled a little; finding that hearing those words made it hurt less. "You… did? Like who?" He recognized they'd only dated for a couple days, that this wasn't something to freak out about especially since Dean's reason was totally different.

Dean looked up at him a little guiltily, "I just found that I could talk to him easier, he and I seemed to come from a similar place." Dean shook his head, "You're kinda smart for me," he laughed awkwardly, "I mean it's great, to meet someone your age that I can actually have a decent conversation with, but we're too different for this to work out right."

Sam nodded, wiping his eyes. It still hurt, of course, but he didn't want to look so pathetic after dating for a few days. "When'd you meet him?"

Dean knew that he'd have to say otherwise Jet would and that'd make it so much worse, "…Friday."

Sam looked up, realizing that was the same day they'd met at the library, the same day they'd first went out. "What?" His tone was even and void of anything, matching his expression.

"I went to the bar after our date and met him there." Dean tried to continue to look at Sam's face though the way it shifted toward agonized and betrayed he could hardly take. "I'd expected to get laid, but obviously that hadn't happened. Instead I went to have a few drinks and he approached me-"

"And you had sex?" Sam frowned, "You cheated on me on the first day!"

Dean stood there in silence, his head hung and eyes turned away. This was enough for Sam to conclude he was right.

"Oh my- What the hell?" He didn't quite catch the new rush of tears though he didn't care so much this time. "I can't believe that you'd do that… I should have seen it coming, you're just like the rest of them!" He shook his head, "No, you're  _worse_! You'd lie to me like that, asking me out on dates and… and… How dare you!"

"Sam, I-"

"No! Don't… don't talk to me." Sam moved away from him, his heart feeling like it would break in two. "I can't… I can't do this anymore." He turned and booked it back home, fighting and losing against the streams of salty fluids leaking down his face.

"Sam!" Dean shouted but dropped his arms, "That could have gone better…" he muttered, turning back toward the car. At least it was over and done with now.


	9. What Happened To You?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: This chapter contains a lot of abuse and references to some ugly things so if you don't like it probably best you skim past it. Oh, since this is an upload and such most of you already know but for some people I need to make it obvious. THERE WILL BE QUESTIONABLE SEXUAL ACTIVITY MENTIONED AND/OR DESCRIBED BE VERY ADVISED.

" _Then… Then I'll run away!" Dean countered; his pudgy face full with as much serious as he could fit in it._

_John snorted, "Sure you will. Just eat them, or go to your room."_

_Dean stubbornly dropped out of his chair and stormed away, "I hate you!" He cried poutily, running up the stairs._

_The five-year-old dropped into his bed and threw a tantrum, tears running down his face as he stared up at the ceiling, wishing he had pie. Stupid mom and dad, was all he could think, the only people he would blame for the fact that he wasn't getting any pie. His dad didn't believe him when he said it but he'd show dad, he'd prove that he didn't have to eat the gross, yucky things._

_Dean grabbed his baseball cap, the one his dad had bought him at their first baseball game together, just the two of them. He pulled it down as far as it'd go, getting stuck on his large ears, which is where he left it._

_He knew his parents were busy with little Sammy; Dean was sorry he couldn't say good-bye to his little brother but if he were caught now he'd never be able to run away. So he left without parting words to Sam, he didn't know at the time how sorry he would be later that he didn't._

_Dean snuck out easily and ran as far as he could go, which wasn't that far but you don't say that to a five year old. It took the better part of the day for Dean to wander further and further from home. He looked around at the sketchy neighborhood, everything looked dirtier, even the people. The homes were run down, some might have even been boarded shut, he wasn't sure really._

_A man walked up to him, tall, skinny, messy and with a mean look in his eye. "Why're you all alone?" He slurred in a weird way, much different than when his dad was drunk, this sounded deliberate._

" _I ran away from home." Dean stated stubbornly._

" _Ran away… Why would you do a thing like that?" The man looked him up and down, that smile spreading and almost cracking his face in half._

" _Because mom and dad wouldn't listen to me. I said I didn't wanna eat the yucky things…" Dean frowned deeply._

" _Awww…" The man squatted down to look at the clean and smooth face of the small boy, "Well kiddo you should have listened to them… Because now you'll be staying with me."_

_Dean looked up, confused. "What?"_

_This man snatched Dean up, covering his mouth with a dirty palm, and whisked him into a grungy dump of a building, tossing him onto the floor in his basement. "Stay there a while." He sneered with a laugh._

_Dean looked up, eyes wide in shock and fear. Suddenly he wanted his daddy but no matter how much he cried and screamed his hero never showed up._

_After hours and hours in the dark, smelly room Dean wandered to the staircase and hopped up it until he reached the door, "Mister?" He called, "I gotta pee, can I use the bathroom?" He waited patiently but no answer came. "Hello?" He reached up and tried the filthy door handle but of course it was locked. Dean frowned and hopped back down the stairs, figuring maybe there was a toilet down here he could use._

_Just as he made it to the bottom step the door opened and the man came down, "Alastair," he said with that smile again, "What's your name, kiddo?"_

" _Dean…" Dean fidgeted awkwardly, "Do you have a bathroom?"_

_Alastair looked around and shrugged, "Backroom" he pointed toward a blackened doorway, which Dean scurried toward. Alastair grinned and followed the boy, not allowing him any sort of privacy._

_Dean looked up anxiously but couldn't hold it in anymore so he just went, not bothering to try to get alone time. Once done he washed his hands though the water was questionable, pretty rusty and other possible things in the pipes. Dean wiped his hands on his pants and looked over at Alastair, "I'm hungry…"_

_Alastair smiled and grabbed Dean by his hair, hauling him to one side of the basement where a grimy mattress had been discarded. He pinned Dean to the wall, pressing hard against the boy's ribcage until Dean could only squeak in protest, "I don't care." Alastair hissed with a laugh, "You're mine now, boy."_

_Dean looked up, horror written across his face. "I wanna go home." He whined when the man let up on the pressure, "Please…"_

" _Not a chance." Alastair let Dean drop onto the dirty thing below him, kneeling as well, "We're going to have some… fun."_

_The next few hours would have been filled with Dean's screaming except a rag had been shoved into his mouth to prevent it, didn't need people hearing a child's scream while the police were looking for him. Alastair left when he felt like it, walking away from the bloody mess of a boy he'd had his way with._

_Dean sniveled, hands shakily moving up to pull the gag from his mouth, his tongue roaming through the ugly, pasty tastes left behind. He whimpered when trying to move, his legs trembling and though he knew it hurt like hell he couldn't really feel his ass, just a dull throbbing mixed with a fast cooling liquid that had leaked down into the mattress. Dean decided moving wasn't such a good idea though, instead he curled up and started to cry uncontrollably._

_Alastair returned soon after and smacked him, "Shut up." He snarled, "If you stop making noise I'll feed you."_

_Dean tried to stop crying though he was only five; self-control wasn't exactly simple for him. Alastair gagged him again; this time he tied it in a knot to make sure Dean couldn't get it out even if he tried. "There." The man growled as he walked away, "Next time shut up on your own."_

_Dean sobbed harder into the rag, he wished he could curl further into and further into a ball and just disappear. He wished he had eaten the food his mom and dad told him to._

* * *

_The rest of that year was spent just like that; Dean learned to shut up pretty quickly, especially when his stomach felt like it would suck everything into itself. He'd mostly come to accept the treatment he'd been getting, or at least he didn't complain out loud because he knew it would make things worse. Every night he stared up at the ceiling of his basement cell and whispered to his dad though he knew the man couldn't hear him; "I'll eat my vegetables, daddy." He whimpered and sniffled quietly, "I'll eat all of them. Please, find me…" But every night his hopes went unheard._

_He'd been allowed upstairs a few times, and soon had almost free roam of the house except for Alastair's room. Dean never left the house that year, he stayed in the safety of the house, knowing that there were other people out there in the world that would take him like Alastair had, at least Dean knew Alastair would feed him._

_At the one-year marker Alastair pat Dean on the shoulder and said, "Why don't you go outside for a bit?"_

_Dean looked up, a little suspicious but really kind of excited, "You mean it?"_

_Alastair grinned, "Yeah, in a minute." He punched Dean across the room, adding to a million other cuts and bruises that the boy already had. There was no reason for it anymore, Dean knew that asking why wouldn't get him any answers as to how to avoid it so he instead he just started to stand up again._

" _Stay in the backyard." Alastair ordered, opening the backdoor._

_Dean nodded and stumbled out, he could feel his face swelling already and it wasn't until the cool breeze flowed over him that he realized his head might be bleeding. He didn't need a reminder that his leg was pretty broken up though the uneven ground decided to help him with that. Dean tripped over some scrap metal sticking out of the ground and landed on a bunch of other garbage and scraps scattered about, he'd now cut pretty much anything that had no marks made on him._

_Despite the pain he hardly made a sound as his limbs felt like they went numb, he slowly pulled himself off the pile and limped along, finding that several houses shared the same nasty backyard. It looked like a space that people dumped their shit for lack of a better place to put it. Dean sat in the center in a big tire and stared down at the ground. He was outside, now what? He couldn't go anywhere, no one could really see him back here, he was never going home. He was stuck with that monster until he died because Dean was sure that he would. Tears welled up and he tried to wipe them away, he sobbed quietly and continued to rub his eyes because the tears didn't stop._

_He hadn't noticed the person walking over to him until they dropped onto the tire beside him, and though it could have been Alastair Dean didn't bother to look up. If it were Alastair he'd have been hit by now, no this other person was also much much smaller._

_Dean's crying eventually slowed down until they sat beside each other in silence for what felt like forever and yet no time at all._

_The other boy turned his head at about the same time Dean had, both staring at one another and taking in the beaten state. Dean realized that this boy looked about as bad as he did, messy, shaggy brown hair matted down in a few places with something Dean didn't want to identify. Light brown eyes scrutinizing and scanning him, every movement he made was just as distrustful as Dean's, possibly more so. He had dark bruises on his face and even uglier ones on his neck, leading down into the collar of his shirt._

" _You look like shit." The boy said evenly to Dean, as if he weren't just as horrid looking._

_Dean frowned and looked away, staring down at his feet. What could he say in return to that? He took his time trying to think of something, he didn't notice how much time had passed while he thought, in fact after an hour he finally muttered his reply, "No… you…"_

_The other boy snorted a laugh, his face brightened with a smile, "Wow, that's it?"_

_Dean looked up at him and couldn't help the smile the spread across his face, it'd been so long since he'd seen a genuine smile like the one the other boy had. It was sincere and lacked any disturbing thoughts that could taint it. "Shut up." He felt himself laugh a little bit as he spoke, another thing that he hadn't done in a long time._

_The boys snickered together until the other one stuck his hand out, "Name's Jet."_

" _Dean." He replied and took Jet's hand. Instead of doing a regular handshake, though, the boys made up a secret one that they'd later change and mess up over and over again. It didn't matter though, both had finally found someone they could call their friend._

" _Meet you out here tomorrow?" Jet asked after his father shouted for him, the boy had already stood and was walking toward his house, the one directly across the yard from Dean's._

" _If he lets me." Dean answered quietly._

_Jet looked up at the window to see the creepy man staring down at Dean with a somewhat pleased grin, "I think he will." He waved at Dean and ran off after another hollering of his name._

_The door opened behind Dean and Alastair motioned for him to come in, pat him on the head as he passed by._

_Dean couldn't understand why Alastair let him back out the next day or the following one, in fact his bruises had mostly healed and he'd been cleaned up some. The only places Alastair hit him were under his clothes, unless it looked like skinned knees and the like he didn't want Dean getting too hurt. This went on for about a week and before Dean could figure any of it out he was being shipped into school, something he remembered doing a tiny bit for pre-school, but he'd only really done about a day of that._

_His first day he'd been given instructions; no talking about Alastair, don't tell people about where he used to live, don't show anyone his scars or bruises and if someone sees them then say that he got them playing outside. Also he had to wait for Alastair to pick him up in the same vehicle he was dropped off in, Alastair wouldn't be getting out of the car so Dean would have to recognize it. All of these things and a few others were what he needed to do to ensure he ate so he did them._

_Dean sighed heavily, how would he explain the limp he walked with? Playing outside as well? What, did he fall and a tree forcefully rammed up his ass repeated, over and over and over every day? That didn't make much sense. What if he couldn't explain the bruises properly? What if he accidentally talked about Alastair when people asked who picked him up? Or if people talked about their moms and dads, what if he talked about the ones he used to have? And little Sammy? Dean shook his head; this school thing would be the end of him, he'd never eat again and then he'd die. Making the last year of his struggle to survive a horrible waste of time._

_Luckily for him the moment he walked in the door he heard Jet calling to him._

_Dean looked up and smiled, watching his equally injured friend wave him over. Maybe school wouldn't be so bad; after all, in the last week of knowing Jet he'd learned enough to know that Jet was a king of liars. If anyone could help him lie about his injuries or cover for him in anything, it'd be Jet._


	10. You Made It Home

Sam threw the door open and slammed it shut just as quickly, he could hardly see through the blurry tears that soaked his face, dripping from his nose and chin. He wiped his hand down his face though it hardly made a difference. Sam pressed his head against the door, fighting his hardest to stop the sobbing, to stop his shoulders from quivering. "Damn it…" he hissed, slamming his fist against the frame, "Damn it!"

"Sam?" Mary walked over, "Sam are you alright?"

He looked up, eyes red and puffy. No matter how old you are, when your mom comes to see if you're okay while you're trying to fight off tears you won't stand a chance. And Sam didn't. He broke down as soon as she touched him; he fell into her arms and pressed his face against the soft fabric of her blouse.

"Oh, Sam…" Mary stroked the back of his head, her other arm wrapped around him firmly. "Come sit in the living room." She led him gingerly; carefully making sure he made it there safely. She sat with him quietly, listening to him as he let it out, sobbing and bawling.

Castiel thudded down the stairs without any grace whatsoever, stumbling into the living room. "I heard crying…" He looked down at Sam and bit his bottom lip, "Did… your boyfriend…"

Sam nodded, sniveled and hiccupped, attempted to speak and failed. Mary stroked his back and looked at Cas, "You know something about this?"

Cas hesitated but nodded, "Yeah…"

"Sam we'll be right back, sit tight, okay?" Mary stood and led Castiel to the kitchen, "Alright, spill it."

Cas fidgeted briefly, "Well uh… Friday, when Sam was at the library, he met a guy who asked him out. They were good together, or so he said. He got his hopes up… like way up there," Cas motioned above his head, "And from the looks of it, his boyfriend just left him."

Mary shook her head; "I'm going to go see if I can get anything more out of Sam, he feels better when he talks about it." She hurried back to the living room, this time at least slightly more prepared to handle her son's breakdown. "Sweetie, did you want to tell me what happened?"

Sam inhaled shakily, seeming to have gotten a grip on himself, or at least a better one. "He wanted to tell me in person… But what he told me…" Sam trembled and tried to get a better hold on himself, "It was all so stupid… What's wrong with me?"

"Nothing is wrong with you, Sam. There's nothing wrong with getting attached to someone you just met, okay?" Mary pet his cheek, "What did he say?"

"He… he told me that after our first date he… he went to the bar and picked up another guy." Sam shook his head; "On our first date he went and had sex with some other guy because I wouldn't…"

"Sam, that isn't your fault. He's the one to blame here." Mary tried to console Sam though she didn't realize the way her other son had gone pale.

"From… a bar?" Cas walked around to face Sam, "What… What was his name?"

"Dean." Sam snapped, "His name was Dean." He looked up and watched the horror settle into Castiel's expression, his suddenly looking sunken and ill. "Cas?"

"My boyfriend's name is… Dean…" Cas trembled and lifted his hand, "About yay-tall, brown hair, spiked…"

"And hazel eyes." Sam finished, his heart sinking a little further, "Oh my god…"

Cas stumbled backward; lucky for him John's chair was right there because his legs gave out, dropping him into the worn leather seat. "I met him at the bar Friday night…"

"Cas," Sam stood up and walked over to his brother, watching the blank expression on Cas' face as it was quickly swallowed with grief. "Cas?"

Castiel hunched forward suddenly, hands grasping at his chest. What the hell had just happened? Dean lied to him? Dean had been dating both him and Sam at the same time; he'd just broken it off with Sam… Cas shuddered and felt as though his airways were closing on him, his chest feeling heavier and heavier the longer he sat there. "Ah…" He gasped, his eyes watering, "…ah…nnn…"

"Cas!" Sam took a firm hold of Castiel's shoulders though all the smaller male did was shake.

Mary crossed the room and pulled Cas into the same hug she'd given Sam, squeezing him. "He's just hurt, Sam." She said calmly, "Cas hasn't ever gone out with anyone," she looked up at Sam, "My guess is that he put more stock into this Dean than you did."

Sam shook angrily,  _'What am I supposed to do here?'_  He thought and stalked out of the room, his hand finding his phone. The only thing he could think to do was call Dean.

Mary looked over there for a moment then back down at Cas, "Brown hair… hazel eyes… named Dean… Couldn't be..." She shook her head though something nagged at the back of her mind.

Sam waited, listening to the rings until Dean picked up.

" _Sam-"_

"You son of a bitch!" Sam shouted, "You slept with Castiel!"

" _Castiel?"_  Dean had to think on that for a moment, Castiel… Cas.  _"Wait, you mean Cas?"_  Cas had never given Dean a full name…

"Yeah, Cas!" Sam snarled, "You cheated on me with my own  _brother_!"

" _Cas is your…"_  Dean trailed off as he realized what that meant.  _"Oh crap… Where is he?"_

"He's currently breaking down because of you, dick! You're never seeing him again, if you come anywhere close I'll kill you."

Dean shook his head,  _"No, I have to see him. I'm coming anyway."_  He didn't wait for Sam to respond and hung up.

Sam growled and went back to the living room, "He's coming back… I'm calling dad."

Mary nodded, anyone who hurt her boys deserved to get the 'John treatment'.

John was already on his way home when he got the call and the explanation of what had happened with this one guy that both sons had dated. "And he's on his way to our home?" John asked to double check.

"Right." Mary was still next to Cas as she spoke, a little worried when she looked down at his unresponsive form.

"Well I'm almost there, I should beat him." John put his foot to the floor.

"And John?"

"Yeah?"

"His name is Dean, apparently." She wasn't sure if he'd pick up on it though his following silence told her enough.

"…There are a lot of boys named Dean, Mary." John sighed, "I'll be right there."

As promised, John made it home first, looking down at Castiel strangely, "It's only been a few days, why is he taking this so hard?"

"Because it's Cas, dad." Sam looked over, "He gets attached, you know that."

John nodded, going over to the boy and kneeling next to him, "You okay, son?"

Cas' eyes flicked up briefly before returning to their gaze on the floor, he shook his head.

John sighed again and stood up, walking to the door, "I see headlights, guess he's here."

Sam nodded, leaning against a wall nearby. He knew his dad would have a few things to say to him later but right now he just wanted to watch Dean be torn a new one. Not just for what he'd done to Sam, mostly for Castiel.

The doorbell rang once before John opened it, aggressively taking a step forward before he jerked to a stop. Dean stared at him with wide eyes, expecting to be hit but the blow never came. John blinked, tears welling up immediately. "Dean?"

Dean hesitated though his mind flashed back and remembered that face. "…Dad?"

John's stance relaxed and he threw his arms around his oldest son, squeezing Dean with as much strength as he could muster. "My god, son…"

Dean trembled but wrapped his arms around John as well, unable to even process the emotions that rampaged through him. He closed his eyes and let the tears streak his face, his heart's pounding finally slowing down. He was safe, he was home. "Dad… I can't believe it…"

"Where have you been?" John leaned back again, "We looked all over for you."

"You know Grange Street? I ended up down there." Dean laughed a little.

John stared at him in awe, "You… were in the same town this whole time?"

"Kind of…" Dean looked up at Sam who couldn't look more confused if he tried. "Can I come in, dad?"

"Of course," John stepped aside, "Mary, you were right."

She ran over from the living room, "Oh my god! Dean!" She went up to hug him, held on and never planned to let go. "My baby… you came home…" She wept.

Sam looked over at Cas in the living room, his brother curled up in on himself, head tucked as low as it could get. Sam's gaze shifted back to Dean and his parents' smiling faces. "Are you fucking kidding me!" He cursed, "Aren't you forgetting something? What he did to Cas and I?"

"Sam it was like three days, you'll be fine." John looked over at him, "Your older brother's home, after so long of thinking he's dead. Can't you not fight for a little while?"

Sam stared at them, completely shocked. "I can't believe this…" he stormed past them, put his shoes on and ran out the door.

"Sam…" Dean moved to follow but John placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Sam will be fine," he motioned toward the living room.

Dean nodded and walked in; looking over at the teenager he'd chosen. "Cas…" he quietly walked across the room and knelt next to him. Dean watched Cas for a moment before turning to his parents, "Can I have a moment with him?"

Mary nodded and pushed John out of the room.

"Cas, hey…" Dean reached in between Cas' stomach and his legs, prying the boy apart. "Come on, look at me…"

Castiel knew when he wasn't strong enough to stop Dean so instead he uncurled and lashed out at him, "Get away from me! Liar!"

Dean took the hit and pulled Castiel into his arms, "Cas, I'm so sorry…"

Cas struggled and squirmed until he tired, his fingers gripping the fabric of Dean's shirt, squeezing it and tugging at it. "No… let me go." He looked up, tears staining his face like just about everyone else in the house, "You…" He turned away again and rested his head on Dean's shoulder. They stayed like that in silence for a few minutes; Cas closed his eyes and sighed. "You're their original older son…"

"Yeah," Dean picked Cas up and sat down in the chair, he put the teen in his lap and continued to hold him. "I'm sorry."

"Why would you do that? How could you do that to me?" Cas whispered.

"Honestly Cas I don't know what's wrong with me… I had met Sam earlier that day but you… You caught my eye, you changed me, the way I think and act. I hadn't realized how special you were to me until it was too late and I was dating you both. I would have only asked you out after I broke it off with Sam but you needed to hear it right then, at that moment and I didn't want to lose you. I should have told you… I don't know how many times I can say I'm sorry here…"

Cas looked up at him and paused to consider the entire situation, how Dean and Sam had ended up, how the two of them had met and all the circumstances. It was wrong of Dean to ask both of them out, to have sex with him while Sam was considered Dean's boyfriend. It wasn't right but Cas didn't want to lose Dean either, despite what had just happened. "I… I need you with me." He admitted softly, "I'm mad at you, very… But don't go."

Dean nodded and held him tighter, "Alright…"

"Good enough for me," Mary walked back in and sat down as near to Dean as she could. "What have you been up to? I want to hear about all of it."

John joined in, also eagerly waiting for Dean to speak.

Dean laughed lightly, "You're sure? It's kind of… well alright, I'll tell you." He adjusted himself in his seat to better hold Cas and look at his parents. "A man named Alastair picked me up off the street the day I ran away…"

Dean got into the details of it, the beatings and rape, the year of being trapped inside and how twisted he felt. He teared up but tried to continue, Cas wrapped his arms around him and held on tightly which only made him want to let go all the more. John stared, anger rising in him.

"Where did you say you lived?" He managed to say calmly.

Dean repeated it through awkward inhales and brief moments of hyperventilation, Mary moved in to help comfort him, nodding her head toward John as the man stood. "I'll be back…" John walked out to the garage and soon they heard the car drive away.

"Wh-where's he going?" Dean sniffled.

"Don't worry about that," Mary stroked his cheek, "How about I make you some pie?"

Dean laughed sadly, "I'd really like that."


	11. Nobody's Perfect

A knock at the door. "Hello?" Alastair opened it and received the butt end of a shotgun; it connected directly with his nose and knocked him backward. John kicked the door open and swung it closed behind him.

"Alastair, right?"

"What the hell? You broke my nose…" Alastair looked at the blood coating the front of him. "Yeah, that's me. And you are?"

John grinned madly, "John Winchester, the father of a little boy named Dean."

Alastair's eyes widened a little. "Oh…"

"Yeah…" John raised the gun and struck the man again, "I was going to make this quick and just shoot you in the head but the more I think about it the more I think you don't deserve it…" He grabbed Alastair by the throat and hauled him toward the dark basement he'd heard about. Being an ex-marine John knew a thing or two about stringing a man up and he demonstrated the knowledge the scraggly son of a bitch.

Alastair struggled a little but couldn't do much against the larger man. John rummaged and found what he could in the disgusting place; a long strip of barbed wire was enough to earn John's interest. "This'll do." He wrapped the wire all around Alastair's body; every little point poised to press in, all he had to do was pull. "You're going to pay for what you did to my boy…" He snarled viciously.

* * *

The family was startled when John shoved the door open several hours later, Mary hurried over to him, "My god John you've got blood all over you…" She tried to whisper though Cas and Dean both leaned out to see.

John looked up at Dean and smiled, genuinely, "That man won't be bothering you anymore."

Dean stared at him, tears once again on the verge of spilling over, "Dad… did you…?"

"Yeah, he's dead."

"John!" Mary panicked, "What about the police? You want to be taken to jail!"

"You forget I was in the marines, Mary." John looked at her, "But I actually called the cops and asked them about him, apparently they'd been looking for someone with that description for a while now. It happened to be Bobby, actually. He said he'd come right down and uh… well we took real good care of that bastard." John laughed a bit before he was knocked backward by Dean's weight suddenly falling against him. He closed his eyes and wrapped his arms around Dean tightly. "I'm so sorry I didn't find you…" He whispered.

Dean sobbed out a laugh at that, "I'm okay now. But you know something?" He leaned back to look up at his dad; "I always used to say 'dad, I'll eat my vegetables now.'"

John laughed despite the ache that made in his chest, "Yeah, we held a funeral for you after months of searching. I said 'you don't have to eat your vegetables if you don't want to.'" He wiped his eyes; "And Sam hugged your tombstone, saying goodbye to you." John sighed lightly, "I'm glad you're back."

Dean nodded, "Yeah, me too."

Cas looked between them awkwardly, glanced over at Mary and started to fidget. "I… guess you guys have your family back together now…"

Mary went to his side and hugged him tightly, "Cas, you're in this family too, no one would ever replace you here."

Cas smiled and nuzzled his face against hers, "Thanks, mom."

"No worries, sweetie." She ran a hand through his hair, ruffling it.

Dean looked around, "It's dark out already… Sam's not back yet."

John looked at the time and drummed his fingers, trying to look completely calm though he was a little anxious. "He's a big kid, he'll be alright."

Dean shook his head, "No, Sam's too used to you guys looking out for him. I'm going to go looking." He stood up and headed for the door, "I'll be back with him in no time, alright?"

Cas crossed the room to him though he stopped just before touching him, "What will you say to him? Sam can be pretty stubborn…"

Dean smiled and stroked Castiel's cheek gently, "Don't worry about it, Cas. I'll think of something."

Cas' brow furrowed as he watched Dean pull on shoes, "That's what I'm worried about… Sam's not easy to talk to, especially when you're the one he's mad at."

"Well after what dad said to him I don't imagine he'll feel like talking much to dad either, so I'm going."

"I could go-"

"No," Dean shook his head, "You're pissed with me too and I'm sure you guys want to bad-mouth me together but that can wait. Right now it's late and Sam could be just about anywhere, I'll find him so stay put."

Cas sighed and walked back to the kitchen, "Whatever."

"Be right back." Dean pulled his phone out as he walked toward his car, Sam's number already ringing away.

"… _Hello."_  Sam answered after a long wait, his tone sharp; clearly he was still pretty angry.

"Sam, where are you?" Dean cut right to it.

" _And why the fuck should I tell you!"_  Sam snapped,  _"What does it matter to any of you where I am?"_

"Sam, don't be like that."

" _And another thing, stop saying 'Sam' in front of everything, it doesn't make me want to listen to you any more."_

"Okay, I get that you hate me and I deserve it. But you shouldn't get yourself hurt over this."

Sam laughed, a bitter, uncomfortable sound.  _"I think getting hurt is the best plan I've heard yet."_

"Don't! What would it prove?" Dean hopped into his car, "Just tell me where you are, I'll come get you."

" _Mom and dad always think 'perfect little Sammy', doesn't get into trouble and sticks to his books. Everyone thinks that. Sam's fine on his own, no need to worry about him. Sam's strong enough; he can handle it on his own. Sam doesn't need our attention because he's doing fine all by himself."_ He inhaled shakily; another laugh followed closely behind, though this time it faltered at the end and trailed into a whimper.

"Calm down, okay? What are you so shaken up about? Mom and dad love you…" Dean stopped for a moment, "You're upset because they didn't- they don't give you enough attention?"

Sam was quiet on the other end.

"It's because they keep calling you home because they're worried about your grades but not you. How much of this have you had to do on your own? The stranded because of jackasses, the being dumped because you have standards?"

"… _Pretty much all of it."_ Sam sighed, sirens sounded distant in his background.  _"Dad wondered why I couldn't hold down a relationship, he's not exactly a supportive kind of person. Mom just… said what she thought I wanted to hear. I didn't call them or tell them about any of the times I was kicked to the curb… It's always been about Cas."_

"I thought they didn't care so much about what happened with Cas?" Dean asked, a little confused.

" _They've always cared what happens with Cas. He's sensitive; he needs more attention more often than I do. Squeaky wheel gets the grease, and all that… I mean, how many people has he slept with? Too many for me to even want to ask him… But it's because he's been looking for something, someone to really care for him. I mean our family has done a lot for him but he needs someone to love him like a partner, and take care of him. I'm just…"_  Dean heard a few more sounds he couldn't quite identify on Sam's end.  _"I'm just not like that. And because I'm not mom and dad are in the habit of just thinking 'Sam can handle it' without really asking me."_

Dean sat in silence for a moment, thinking it over. "And you want to get hurt because if you show them that you aren't perfect or that you need looking after too they might start paying attention again?"

" _Sounds stupid when you put it like that…"_

"It is, kind of. Have you tried talking to them?"

" _Don't you think someone like me would? Of course I did."_

Dean waited for a moment, "And?"

" _And dad responded with more rules while mom did her best to treat me like I was five! I didn't want to be treated like a kid but they didn't get it…"_  Sam growled in frustration, _"So maybe they'll stop and wonder 'where did we go wrong with Sam' after I do something incredibly stupid."_

"Where are you?" Dean decided to ask again, mentally praying for an answer.

" _Your old neighborhood, I think. It's dirty, sketchy, and there are some very questionable people doing questionable things over behind that building… I think I'm going to go over and say hello…"_

"I'll be right there, Sam. Don't do anything stupid, okay?" Dean reared off the driveway and floored it; all he could do was hope that he made it there before Sam got himself killed.

" _Hey guys! Whatcha doing?"_  Sam's voice called distantly over his phone as he hung up.

"Damn it, Sam!" Dean shouted, hitting the steering wheel and throwing his phone back into his pocket, speeding toward Grange Street like a man possessed.

* * *

Dean drove into the old neighborhood; mentally kicking himself for coming back here, for letting Sam just leave like that. He spotted several figures down an alley and slammed on the breaks, climbing out of the car and stalking over there. Out of the ones he could see there was only one person standing, two people flaked out on the ground. "Hey!" Dean called, his voice echoing off the closed the space making him sound bigger than he was.

When the figure turned to look at him Dean realized it was Sam, eyes wide and face pale. "Dean…"

"Sam!" Dean ran over, looking down at the two guys laid out. Blood pooled from their heads, some of it splattered on the corner of a garbage bin next to them. "Sam… what did you do?"

"They… They uh…" Sam's voice shook as did the rest of him, his hands almost looked like vibrators as he lifted them to point at things, "They attacked m-m-me and…" He looked down at himself, which was when Dean noticed the dark stain growing on his little brother's abdomen.

Dean lurched forward and lifted the fabric, "You've been stabbed!" He looked up at total shock that Sam still expressed, Sam hadn't quite registered what happened, it looked like. Dean looked down at the guys again, trying to figure out what to do.

"I… I killed them… Dean I killed someone…" Sam blubbered, his mind leaning a lot closer to hysteria.

"Calm down, I'll take care of that later, alright? I'm going to take you to the hospital and when we get there don't mention what you did to these guys, all right? They stabbed you and ran away, that's what you tell them if they ask." Dean scooped Sam into his arms as he explained; the teen's body felt colder than Dean was comfortable with. "You understand? Sam, talk to me."

"Yeah… I understand..." Sam rested his head against Dean's shoulder, eyes falling closed.

"SAM!" Dean shook him, "Sam keep your eyes open!"

Sam jumped a little and nodded, his hands finding his belly and cradling it. Dean placed him in the car, removing his shirt and pressing it into Sam's hands, "Put pressure on it." He ordered, closing the door and rushing around to the other side.

Once he'd gotten them moving he pulled his phone and called the only person he could think to call, "Pick up…"

" _Hello?"_  Jet's voice rolled in pretty quickly from the other end.

"Jet, I need your help." Dean led with that, he didn't have time to screw around and goof off.

" _What's up?"_  Jet sounded fairly calm though Dean could picture that the other man had already stood up and was heading for the exit.

"Sam got into some trouble back on Grange Street, alley behind the old Sneers house. I'm rushing him to the hospital but he may have seriously… hurt some guys back there. Could you take care of it?"

" _Body clean up?"_  Jet asked smoothly.

"Yeah, Sam's with me now, he's a little sensitive with it." Dean explained, glancing over and nudging Sam to make sure the teen was still with him.

" _Piece of cake, I'll get some guys over there, ASAP. I'm going myself, of course. Have to make sure they don't mess up."_

"You're the best."

" _You know it. I'll give you a call with the news later, 'kay?"_

"Thanks."

" _Take care of that guy."_

"Will do." Dean hung up, making a mental note to introduce Jet to his family.

"Dean…" Sam spoke so quietly Dean wasn't sure if he'd imagined it. "Dean I'm sorry…"

"Don't be, there's nothing you need to be sorry for, Sam." Dean pat his brother's shoulder reassuringly.

"I'm… I'm glad I could meet you." Sam looked up, his face looking even paler than it had in the alley.

"Don't talk like that Sam, you'll get to see more of me alright? You'll be fine, just hang on." He stared forward as he sped through stoplights and weaved in traffic, the whole while grinding his teeth, "You'll be fine."


	12. Recovery

"I'm sorry but you can't see him yet." The nurse stood in front of Cas as he urgently made his way through the hospital along with John and Mary. They'd gotten the news after Dean made it to the hospital; the oldest Winchester brother sat quietly in the waiting room, fiddling with his phone. Cas tried to get past her but she wouldn't move.

"Why? What's so bad that I can't see my brother?" Castiel snapped worriedly, Mary placing a hand on his shoulder to pull him back. Cas looked at her anxiously, "Mom, Sam needs us!"

"I know, honey. But right now we need to let the doctors do what they can for him." She led him toward the seats where John had sat down beside Dean.

"Why would he do something like that?" John sighed heavily.

"Because he felt unappreciated and unwanted." Dean muttered, "Sam is independent but that doesn't mean that you can ignore him and pretend he doesn't ever need you. He broke down and did something stupid because he wanted you two to realize that even though he can handle himself he still needs your attention."

John was quiet for a while, reflecting on the time Sam had brought up how he wanted more attention from both of his parents. "I guess being a jerk when he talked about it wasn't the way to go about it, huh?" He looked over at Dean thoughtfully.

"No, not really." Dean sighed, "Sam's pretty distraught right now… He wanted your attention but you guys ended up treating him like a baby."

"…This is because of me, right?" Cas interjected, "Because I've always been needier than him?"

"Cas…" Dean wanted to say something helpful and meaningful but nothing came to mind because that was kinda part of it.

Castiel stood up and went to the nurse again, Mary shook her head, "Those boys… I swear they grow up too fast."

John nodded, "You think you have time to teach them certain things and before you know it they learned it somewhere else a long time ago. You end up missing a lot of chances."

"So where did you guys get Cas from, anyway?" Dean looked over at them.

"Town over, actually. At the end of a court case he was going to be up for adoption and we told them not to bother." John shrugged, "After everything we went through with him in the previous year it just seemed… Right."

"The previous year?" Dean raised an eyebrow.

Mary shook her head as Cas approached again, "Not now." She whispered before the dark-haired teen was in earshot.

"She said she'd tell us as soon as Sam's allowed visitors." Cas sighed and sat down again, leaning forward and resting his face in his hands. "What the hell…? Why wouldn't he talk to me about it?"

"He didn't want to upset you, probably." Dean rubbed Cas' back though the moment his hand contacted the soft fabric of Cas' shirt the younger male pulled away.

"Don't, okay?" Cas adjusted a little so he wasn't touching Dean at all, "Don't talk about Sam like you know him. I know you were his older brother first and I'm just your replacement but I grew up with Sam, if anyone would know why he did anything it'd be me."

Dean sighed and looked down at his phone again, "It's not like I wanted any of this…" He muttered.

John watched both of them, glancing at Mary briefly before he sighed. "How about I take you boys home to rest-"

"No." Cas snapped, "I want to be here to see him as soon as they let me. I'm not sure you noticed but I'm the one who stole his boyfriend from him, who made him feel like I stole all the attention from you guys, and me breaking down and crying about what Dean did in the middle of his moment of grief stole his time to let everything out. I have to talk to him…"

Dean hesitated but put an arm around Cas' shoulders anyway and pulled him closer. He noted that the teen didn't fight back this time,  _'He probably feels pretty rotten…'_  Dean thought as he leaned down to kiss Castiel's cheek. "It'll be alright. First off you didn't know he was dating me, that whole thing is my fault."

"The attention thing is our fault," Mary added softly, "We shouldn't have let him feel that way."

"Plus he's upset with your mother and I," John pat Cas' shoulder, "Not you."

Cas looked at them and half smiled, he leaned against Dean and closed his eyes. "Thanks," he whispered softly.

"Of course," Dean pet his hair and smiled down at him. Just then the phone he'd almost forgotten about went off. "Uh, excuse me…" He turned it on and hurried down the hall, "Yeah?"

" _Hey, I'd like a pepperoni pizza with- Nah, I'm just kidding. I'm here..."_  Jet laughed.

"Dude what the hell's with the pizza thing?" Dean grinned, "Anyway, Sam's all good? He didn't ruin everything his parents have pushed him to do?"

" _Yeah about that, these guys aren't actually dead yet."_

"What? Really? They looked it…"

" _Didn't you check them? Geez man! Have I taught you nothing?"_  Jet scolded,  _"Well regardless they aren't exactly the type you want roaming around when they remember who it was that kicked their asses."_

"So Sam really did do that… Wow, I gotta give that guy a little more credit." Dean shook his head, "Anyway, what were you planning on doing?"

" _Well the guys and I actually already took care of it,"_  Jet sounded a little distracted as he spoke, probably looking at the handy-work.  _"They weren't dead when I phoned you, how's that?"_

Dean smirked, "Let me guess, your little group went 'Ah! Zombies!' or something?"

" _Something like that. Regardless, it is done and will be handled so there's no need to freak out. So do me a favour, tell Sam that he didn't kill them."_

Dean blinked a few times and ran a hand down his face, "Jet…"

" _Yeah?"_

"You're too awesome. You even took note of how I said he was feeling about it?"

" _Of course I'm awesome and yes I paid attention, is that so hard to do with people these days? Just listen for two minutes?"_  Jet scoffed,  _"Whatever, just tell him for me. Otherwise have a good night, I'm sure he'll be fine."_

"Yeah, I think so too. We've seen things like this before, Sam wasn't  _that_  bad. I mean I couldn't help but panic-"

" _You're still panicking, man."_  Jet cut in,  _"Go sit and wait. Did you want me to come over there?"_

Dean paused to consider it, he was supposed to comfort Cas and this was his first night with his family in a long time. "I'm not so sure now would be a good time…" He trailed off.

" _Alrighty,"_  Jet didn't sound fazed by it in the least,  _"Then give me a call if you end up changing your mind, you know I'd be there in a heartbeat."_

"Yeah, thanks Jet."

" _No prob, later m'ang."_

Dean hung up and walked back over to everyone else, all three of them looking up curiously. "Who was that?" Cas leaned against him again as soon as he sat down.

"Just a friend." Dean smiled, "Jet."

"Oh, was he calling to check up on you?" Cas looked up at him.

"Who's Jet?" John raised an eyebrow, "Sounds like a delinquent name…"

"He's my best friend," Dean smirked, "And he's going to love it when I tell him you said that."

"Excuse me?" The nurse walked over, "It's okay to see him now."

Cas was the first one up; bolting to the room they were keeping his brother. "Sam!" His eyes watered when Sam looked up, "Damn it, Sam! What were you thinking?" Cas went to his side and gave him a gentle hug, making sure to keep it to his shoulders.

"Cas…" Sam smiled, "I'm sorry…"

Dean stood back as he watched John, Mary, and Castiel all swarm over Sam for the next little while, he figured that Sam didn't quite want to see him just yet.

"When we take you home all you're going to do is sit in your room and watch movies." Mary said sternly, "While your father and I dote on you."

Sam laughed lightly, "Thanks mom."

* * *

The next day or so consisted of Sam lying in bed with whatever he wanted surrounding him, on Dean's behalf there were a few pies even though they all knew Sam wouldn't eat them. Castiel had been sent to school after a day or two had passed, much to his disdain. He tried to pull the 'my brother needs me' line but Sam shook his head and insisted that Cas go and get an education instead.

"Gah, sell out." Cas sneered at him playfully, "What kind of brother are you?"

"The loving kind, now go to school and get my homework." Sam ordered.

Cas laughed, "That's why? Man you are weird." He kissed Sam's forehead, "Dean's still coming over later anyway, or so he said. Keep him company for me?"

Sam shrugged, "If I have to. You guys still not… you know…"

"No, we haven't had sex since before your little incident." Cas stood up and headed for the door, "I'm still kind of pissed at him for dating both of us at once, especially since he was already going out with you when we first did it. Nah, he deserves to be left hanging for a while."

"But don't you usually go out and have sex like everyday?" Sam raised an eyebrow.

Cas stalled, "He'll be left hanging for as long as I can stand it." He corrected himself before heading out the door, "See you later, Sammy!"

"Bye Cas!" Sam shouted back, rolling his head back into his pillows, he was still pretty exhausted. The painkillers he'd been taking were effective, especially if their main goal was to knock him out. After a yawn he closed his eyes, try and rest a little bit before the big distraction showed up.

"Hey Sam." Dean whispered softly as he stroked Sam's cheek gently.

Sam's eyelids felt even heavier as he looked up; Dean's smile was as perfect as he remembered it though now he saw it in a much different light. He attempted to speak but it sounded a little mumbled and he couldn't even really be sure what he had said.

Dean just smiled a little wider, "Mom says you've been out since 8 this morning even though you got 9 hours of sleep last night, feeling pretty tired, huh?"

Sam furrowed his brow and looked at the clock, "No… Cas just left…" he muttered as he tried to focus on the digital display on his nightstand. It was noon. "Wha…?" He looked at Dean, confusion written all over his face.

Dean laughed and ruffled his hair, "No worries, Sam. Probably just the pain killers." He sat down on a chair that had been placed next to Sam's bed during his recovery period, "How you feeling?"

"Groggy… I guess." Sam yawned again, "I thought I just closed my eyes for two seconds…"

Dean shook his head, "Nope, Cas left around 8 and now it's lunchtime, you lost four hours in thee somewhere."

Sam nodded and stretched gently. "Cas… He's still kind of mad at you."

"I know." Dean shrugged, "Can't be helped though, I'm in both of your lives now, whether you want me here or not." He looked down for a moment, "Is he… really mad?"

"Nah," Sam laughed, "He's holding out until he really needs sex at which time you guys will be fine. All you need to do is just 'be sexy' around him without meaning to, he'll be all over your pants."

Dean snorted, "All over my pants, huh?"

"Yep," Sam nodded, "I'm glad you decided to stay with him, instead of me."

Dean raised an eyebrow at that, "Really?"

"Actually, yeah." Sam glanced at him, "Cas, for the longest time, had been running on empty. He's needier than me; I can get by with just a helpful word from my parents and general interest in who I am. Cas needs people to love him constantly... But that could be because of his birth parents."

"What's the story there?" Dean leaned his elbows down onto his knees, "Cas briefly mentioned them but never really talked about them."

"Well he wouldn't exactly remember them, he was four when mom and dad adopted him." Sam glanced across the hall thoughtfully, peering into Cas' room.

Dean furrowed his brow, "Mom and dad mentioned some things in the hospital too. Something about 'all the things we went through with him' but they were talking about the year before they actually adopted him."

"Mom has photo albums in their room, tucked under the bed. There's a big binder with Cas' name on it, bring it here." Sam pointed in the general direction of John and Mary's room.

Dean nodded and disappeared, looking for it. He returned with a pale blue binder, thick with photos, Castiel Winchester written across the front with a permanent marker. "Got it," he opened it to the first page and nearly tossed the thing down from the jolt he'd felt looking at the first image, "Fuck! What the hell is that!"

There was a withered husk of a body on the first page, skin as white as paper and nearly as fragile. It looked like someone had stretched plastic wrap over a skeleton and painted it a translucent white, the skin sinking into every crevice it possibly could. The eyes were bulging, huge with fear and god knows what else. He looked like Golem from the Lord of the Rings movies except much smaller and his fingers were scratched down to the bone, and of course he was completely naked. Dean looked up at Sam who leaned over to see it.

"Oh, the first ones are a little jumbled, that's the third picture they took of him." Sam whispered.

"Him? You mean this is…"

"Cas, yeah." Sam flipped the images around and pointed to what looked like it could possibly be a stray cat in the grass, crawling out of the window of a house across the street. "Dad took this picture while we were visiting friends of theirs in a few towns over. They were hanging out in the front yard and dad saw this, so he took a picture."

Dean didn't know what to say as he flipped to the next picture, it was a much closer shot, and those huge blue eyes stared up in horror. Or, Dean knew they were supposed to be blue but in these images they looked more like a murky grey.

"Dad went closer after he noticed that no cat would ever move like that." Next was the one Dean saw first, that tiny frame curled up in the grass, fearful of the man with a strange device looming over him.

"Oh my god…" Dean ran a hand through his hair, "What... What happened? How did he end up like this?"

Sam flipped to the next picture; John was cradling the terrified boy as gently as he could. Dean could see that same hand gesture, fingers curled into John's shirt and clinging to him like his life depended on it. "His parents, from what I remember being told. This shot's after dad gave mom the camera."

Dean tentatively touched the photo where Cas' tiny hand clung to his dad, "And is that when they called the police?"

"Yeah, it took a year to put those people away, the whole time Cas was in the hospital." Sam revealed the next images where Cas had been brought home, holding John's hand. He looked a little plumper but otherwise he was still pale as all get out, creepy bulging eyes, scrawny awkward limbs, and only patches of hair on his head. The only real difference between the first pictures and this one were that he didn't look like he'd die if you touched him. "I hate to say it but the first times I saw him I screamed," Sam said regretfully.

"You were four, not really your fault." Dean spoke quietly, flipping through the photos, watching how Cas slowly grew up. "He's looking a lot better over here."

"Yeah, mom and dad babied him to the nines." Sam smiled as he watched Dean pass a photo of him and Cas sitting outside together. Sam looked like a normal kid having fun in the picture, Cas looked like a child who'd just met his comic book hero in real life, his eyes sparkled and his smile was sincere. "He really does hate cameras though," Sam laughed.

"I guess he wouldn't want me seeing these, would he?" Dean looked over at Sam sadly.

"No, definitely not. But I think you should, if you're going to be the one to take care of him." Sam leaned back in his bed again, fingers laced together casually. "…Another thing about the whole situation that I know…" His eyes darkened a little as he looked down at his blanket, "Cas told me something once that I wasn't supposed to tell mom and dad or pretty much anyone, but I want to share it with you."

"You sure you should?" Dean closed the photo album; "It's his secret, right?"

"It's something he's hiding from and I think you can help with it." Sam glowered down at himself further, pissed that he couldn't have done it himself. "Cas told me once that he remembers everything."

"What his parents did to him?" Dean looked appalled.

"Yeah, he was only 3 when he got out of there but Cas has always been smart. I'm book smart and I can study with the best of them but I think he's always been more intelligent. He told me he remembered it all, and then he made me promise not to tell. He didn't tell me the stories of what they'd done but I know it haunts him…"

Dean nodded, "I'll see if I can ask him about it. Cas shouldn't have to deal with that on his own." He looked down at the album, fingers tracing 'Castiel Winchester' slowly, "Thanks Sam, for telling me all of this."

"You needed to know." Sam nodded, "Can you believe the other day I called him E.T. while I was half asleep? I still feel like shit because of it."

Dean snickered, "I think it's been long enough that he doesn't take offense when you say it, Sam. Now if I called him that after seeing his old pictures, that'd be a totally different story."

"I guess you're right." Sam smiled, "So when do I get to meet Jet for real?"

Dean laughed, "I'll run it by mom and dad first but I'm sure he'd love to come over here and say hi." He paused and shook his head, "I'm an idiot! Sam, there's something Jet wanted to tell you that I forgot to relay."

Sam tilted his head slightly, "Like?"

"He went to take care of the bodies and they were just unconscious," Dean smiled, "You didn't kill anyone."

Dean's smile widened when he saw just how much better Sam looked after hearing that, "Really? You aren't just making that up?"

"Seriously, he made me promise to tell you." Dean chuckled, "Though I forgot for a few days so he may end up kicking my ass for leaving you with that thought."

Sam closed his eyes and leaned back against his pillows again, "Thank God…" he whispered with a smile, "Thanks for telling me Dean."

"No problem." Dean looked down at the album again, "I'm… Going to go put this back."

"Good idea." Sam nodded.

Dean walked back to his parents' bedroom, looking down at it again, "Cas…"

"You know his mother was the one who did the worst of it…" Mary said as she walked in behind him, looking down at the album as well.

"Seriously?" Dean looked up at her.

"Yeah, he couldn't stand being around women at all. He was terrified of me, every time I went close to him he screamed, or at least I know it was supposed to be a scream. It took me almost a year to get him to accept me as a woman, I had to dress like a man for forever." She shook her head and sat down on the bed, "He'd only wanted to be around John, for the most part."

"You guys did a great job with him," Dean sat down beside her.

"Yeah, considering everything I think he's doing pretty well. Granted neither John nor I thought he'd be anything but gay, if not completely a-sexual." She pat Dean's leg, "Somehow I'm glad it was you he fell for."

Dean smiled, "Thanks, I think." He leaned over and hugged her, "I promise I'll look after him properly."

"You'd better." She laughed, "Now how about some lunch?"

"Sounds awesome."


	13. Pale and Sickly

The front door swung open after four, Castiel kicked his shoes off and shouted as loud as he could as he slammed the door behind him. "I'M HOME! AND I'VE GOT SAM'S STUPID HOMEWORK!"

Dean grinned at Mary as she rolled her eyes, "That boy… I heard you come in Cas!" She called back and shook her head.

Cas walked in and looked between them, "So what? You just sit down here while Sam's all alone upstairs?"

"He's sleeping again," Dean smiled, "About an hour now, I think. Those painkillers really affect him. I hardly slept at all when I was on them."

Mary looked at him sadly, "You were on painkillers for a stab wound?"

Dean nodded, "It happens, more often than Jet or I would like to say." He looked over at Cas sweetly, "So how was school, gorgeous?"

Cas shrugged, "Meh," he stacked the papers and ran up the stairs to Sam's room.

Dean hung his head; "I'll get it right, yet."

"I'm sure you will." Mary smiled, "In the meantime you should join them."

Dean nodded and as he stood he had to pause and consider something, "Hey mom… Can I ask you something?"

"Sure thing."

"This might sound weird but can I have a friend over for dinner?" Dean remembered telling Jet the other night about how everything had gone down, his best friend seemed happier for him than he seemed to be.

"Of course, Jet, right?" She beamed.

"Yeah," Dean smiled back, "He wanted to meet you guys, and honestly I'd like you to meet him. He's… well I told you already."

Mary nodded, "Well anyone that you throw on a pedestal is welcome here,"

"He's not on a pedestal mom." Dean sighed.

"Obviously you can't see it then," She waved him away, "Go see your brothers…" As she trailed off she had to consider what she'd just said, "Though you're dating Cas… You know you definitely are a Winchester. I've never met any other person who could go missing in the world and then end up dating both of his only brothers at the same time. Only a Winchester."

Dean laughed, "Don't put it that way, you make it sound like I have some seriously bad luck." He took the stairs two at a time, just in time to see Cas hand off the stack of papers to a still very tired Sammy.

"How you feeling?" Cas ruffled Sam's hair and he couldn't help but smile at the unimpressed look he received for it.

"I'm alright." Sam smiled tiredly, "I think I'm going to stop taking the medicine now."

"Keep taking the stuff that'll stop infections but I think your painkillers are a little much." Cas laughed, "Anything that can knock you out like that isn't entirely necessary anymore."

"I still can't do much though, regardless of whether or not my stitches will open up mom keeps shooing me back to bed. I swear she'd give me a bed pan if it didn't mean she'd have to clean it herself." Sam chuckled, putting the papers off to the side on his bed.

"So… How long has Dean been here?" Cas asked shyly.

Dean froze, not wanting to interrupt a perfectly good opportunity to eavesdrop.

"Noon, apparently." Sam's gaze shifted briefly to look Dean in the eye, letting him know that Sam was very aware of his presence. "I'm guessing it's after four, since you're home?"

"Yeah," Cas nodded, "Sam… I haven't really had a chance yet to ask you, are you mad at me?"

"What? No, why would I be?" Sam's eyebrows scrunched together as he considered it.

"Because of all of this… Mom and dad wanted to take care of me ever since we were little; I've taken their attention away from you for as long as we've known each other. And I know that I didn't know this at the time but I ended up taking Dean from you too." Cas fidgeted, his thumbs twiddled together awkwardly.

"I have Dean in a different way now." Sam smiled softly, "Besides, I think it's better this way. At least I didn't find out I had sex with my brother, thank goodness I hold out, huh?" He laughed and winced a little.

"Careful, Sam." Cas lips curled in a small smile, "So we're good?"

"Of course." Sam pat Cas' hands and squeezed them, "Thanks for talking to me about it."

"I figured it was the only way to get it out of my head," Cas grinned, "It worked too." He paused for a moment, "One more question,"

"Shoot."

"What do you think I should do about Dean?"

"What do you mean?" Sam tilted his head slightly, eyes narrowing as he looked Cas' expression over.

"I mean do you think I should stay mad at him right now? What he did wasn't acceptable but do you think he knows that already? I don't know what to do anymore… I really want him but what if he thinks I'm a pushover and that it's okay to do shit like that to me?" Cas sighed in frustration.

Sam smiled, "Well I think you should talk to him. Have you guys really gone over what happened yet? I haven't seen much of an opportunity so far."

Cas shook his head, "No… not exactly."

Dean placed a hand on Castiel's shoulder, "Cas?"

The teen flinched and looked up, "How long were you standing there?"

"Since you gave Sam his homework." Dean admitted, "I wanted to give you two a little bit of alone time but it looks like we need to talk…"

Cas' eyes watered as his breathing hitched, he nodded and glanced over at Sam to see if it'd be an issue. Sam waved them off in a similar fashion to how Mary did it. Dean took Cas' hand and led him across the hall, closing the door behind them.

"So you're pissed with me," Dean sat down on the bed; he tugged Cas over and pulled the teen down beside him. "I deserve it. I deserve a lot worse than what I've gotten from you and Sam." He squeezed Cas' hand gently, "But I understand something a lot more important. You are one of a kind to me; I've never felt so connected to someone like I do to you and I don't think I want to keep going unless it's with you."

Cas wiped his eyes, shifting so he could face Dean a little better, "You really mean it?" He asked softly.

"Yes. Cas, right now more than anything else, I'm sorry that I hurt you and I'd rather destroy my cassette collection than to ever do that again. I love you." Dean took both of Cas' hands in his, he watched the surprise and endearment rise in Cas' eyes and couldn't help but smile. "Castiel, I love you, please forgive me."

Cas threw his arms around Dean's shoulders, pushing him down onto the bed. "I love you too." He mumbled into Dean's neck, his cheek nuzzled against Dean's skin.

Dean squeezed Cas tightly, they lay that way for a little while, Dean shifted up on the bed to make it a little more comfortable. "Cas…" he muttered quietly.

"Yeah?" Castiel answered without moving much, snuggled up nice and close, he didn't plan on getting up any time soon.

"…Sam and talked for a while earlier and he told me to look at some things…" Dean wasn't sure how to approach something like this.

Cas was silent for a moment, he couldn't quite put his finger on what kind of tone Dean had used but it sparked up in his mind pretty quick. "Oh my god…" he sat upright and stared down at his boyfriend, eyes wide and horrified. "He did not… You didn't look at my photo album, did you?"

Dean nodded slowly.

Cas pulled away and headed toward the door, "I can't believe this." Before he could get to the handle, however, Dean had grabbed his arm and pulled him back to the bed and into his lap.

"Cas, calm down." Dean said evenly.

"Calm down! You just looked at the most personal part of my life! How can you even look at me?" Cas had kept his head turned away so Dean couldn't see his face.

"What are you talking about? Cas, you're beautiful." Dean tilted Castiel's chin upward so they could see each other. "Sam wanted me to know."

"So that's his way of getting back at me," Cas grumbled and pulled his head away again. "He  _was_  mad."

"No, Cas. Sam was worried about you, he wanted to make sure you ended up with someone who accepted you through and through." Dean corrected him gently, "And I wanted to tell you he told me because you should know that I'm not fazed by any of it."

"No?" Cas asked sheepishly as he slowly looked up at Dean again.

"Definitely not. You're the same hot piece of ass I met at the bar, after all of that had happened already. Why should I suddenly freak out about the past? I mean granted I want to find your parents and slit their throats but that's besides the point." Dean smiled and kissed Cas' cheek.

Cas returned the gesture and rested against Dean again, "What'd you all hear about it?"

"Sam just explained the photos really. Mom and dad were visiting friends in the neighborhood and dad thought he saw a cat crawling out of a window. Of course you didn't move like any cat he'd ever seen so they went closer and realized that you were a person." Dean explained.

Cas shuddered a little, "Yeah… That sounds about right. You know what's worse than hearing that story and seeing pictures of it?"

"Remembering it?" Dean looked down into pained blue eyes and offered a caring smile, "Sam."

"Figures…I do remember it. Not clearly but I remember the basement. My parents were awful people, all they did was mix drugs, take them, and have sex. Of course they didn't care for protection so my mom was pregnant a lot. I wasn't the only kid down there…" Cas squeezed his eyes shut, trying to recall the story to share it with Dean.

_It was hard to move; sometimes it even hurt to breathe. Cas let out a long and strained breath as he pulled himself to his knees; his mom had dropped a container of food down the basement steps. He was hungry, very, very hungry. His arms shook as he crawled, mouth open to cry out though it was too dry to really make a proper noise. He reached the container first though the contents had splattered across the floor. He dropped onto his belly though it was more of his chest that touched the ground, his stomach didn't stick out enough for that._

_Cas licked what he could off the floor and stairs, of course that meant climbing them. The door swung open again and his mother towered over him. Her hair long and short in patches, eyes sunken and tired, body lanky and worn out. She made a disgusted noise and nudged him down the stairs with her foot, not wanting to really touch him. He thumped down one step at a time until the last two where she just full on booted him the rest of the way._

_He squealed and curled up, she always did something awful to them and since he was the healthiest he was often the one chosen. She started with the others; there were three others down there with him, his brothers and sister. Though they had been given names Cas wasn't sure what they were, all he knew was that they couldn't move anymore and the littlest brother may already be dead._

_Judging from the way his mother tossed the smallest body into the corner where a corpse or two had already been gathered- Castiel didn't remember those ones- the boy was probably dead. She was grumbling something about a no-good husband and how useless he was, or something like that. Cas was more concerned with when she would leave or if she'd maybe give more food. He was still starving._

"What did she usually do?" Dean touched Cas' hand lightly as the teen recalled.

"She… my father could almost never satisfy her sexually, he always finished early or passed out. She usually went downstairs and… used one of us…" Cas gripped Dean's shirt and pressed his face against him, "She'd broken my sister's neck that day… It was so awful. But out of all the things that happened in that basement the worst I think was the window. High above us there was a light shining in from outside, almost every day I saw the sun and I saw what I couldn't have. I yearned for it the older I got. I tried to climb that wall so many times…"

Dean could only tighten his hold on Cas, it reminded him of his own torment so much that he could hardly stand it.

_The door closed behind her and Castiel was left alone with his last sibling, a brother, possibly older though it was hard to tell anymore. He dropped back onto the floor, exhausted. A light shone into his face and he had to look up, it was glaring off of one of the metal things on a shelf, the light came from the window. He rolled his head to see it; it was so bright and beautiful. He forced himself up again and made it to the wall, several markings indicated how many times he'd attempted to scrabble up it. As he sat there a smell wafted in, at the time he didn't know that it was a barbecue, all he knew is that he wanted it. He wanted freedom, he wanted the sun._

_Cas made another attempt; he stacked several things that were nearby, high enough to climb onto the shelf, which meant he was high enough to reach the top of the rolled up rug leaning against the wall. He nearly fell when he'd managed to climb onto the rolled carpet but to his gain it slid against the wall and hit the shelves again, if he could manage to haul himself onto the next available shelf he could reach the window._

_Tiny, weak hands pressed against the glass and it popped free, apparently it was falling out anyway. Cas dragged himself with all his might, one arm reached out and gripped the grass, he pulled himself further until the next arm could stretch out and do it again. His eyes lit up when he realized the surface below him was soft and cushiony and it smelled amazing._

_Cas gurgled strangely and cooed as he squirmed in the grass, loving the feeling of it._

"It felt like… well if I had known how to describe it I would have said it felt like 'God'. I'd never felt anything soft before, I'd never smelled anything so fresh and I definitely hadn't felt so free." He looked over at Dean sadly, "Dad says that, aside from how disturbingly ill I was, he'd never seen anything as purely happy as that. I rolled slowly in the lawn, they were scared to touch me, thought they'd accidentally puncture me with their fingers or something. So they left me like that for the most part. Dad sat down next to me and from what he said, I don't quite remember it, I had crawled into his lap. He scooped me up and cradled me, apparently I had been looking for warmth."

"And from what I saw in the picture you held onto him for dear life." Dean said softly.

"Yeah," Cas nodded, "I hadn't ever really been in someone's arms before, part of it was feeling the fabric of his shirt, the other part just fear, I didn't want him to drop me or throw me."

"Cas… I wish I knew what to say…" Dean stroked his cheek, a sad expression remaining on his face.

"I don't think you have to," Cas kissed his cheek, "It's in the past, alright? It's over now, just like your story. I didn't know what to say to you either when you told us all, I'm glad that dad went and took care of Alastair though…"

"I'm not sure I am…" Dean glanced away.

"You can't tell me you cared about that guy?" Cas looked appalled.

"Not at all, I just… Wish I had been there to see it happen, or the body or something… For closure, you know? I was told he's gone but it's like… I can't be sure he isn't still out there. I know it sounds stupid…"

Cas hugged him tightly, "We're safe now," he whispered, "My parents are still out there too, that doesn't make me any less safe with you."

"They're still out there?" Dean pushed back to look at Cas' face for confirmation.

"…Yeah… Mom and dad had them put away and after the trials they could take me home with them." Cas watched Dean's features as they tensed, "What are you thinking?"

"Where did you live?" Dean asked sternly.

"Dean, forget about it, okay?" Cas held onto him tightly, "Please… just leave it alone."

Dean exhaled deeply and wrapped his arms around Cas snugly, "Only because you don't want me to."

"Thank you." Cas whispered.

The doorbell rang once, twice, and then about five times in rapid succession. Dean and Cas both glanced at one another and shrugged, probably nothing. Enough time passed for Mary to open the door and see who it was, "Dean!" She called up the stairs. A slight mumble of words were exchanged and heavy footsteps practically flew up the stairs, taking at least three at a time from the sound of it.

"Yeah mom?" Dean called back though he had to sit up, his dad was too old to run up the stairs like that so who the hell?

The door handle turned before the thing was kicked in, "Hey man," Jet grinned, replacing his foot on the floor.

"Dude, seriously?" Dean looked at him in disbelief.

"What? You said dinner; family folks usually have dinner sometime around five so here I am! Apparently early…" Jet looked down the hall and waved at the bed-ridden teen, "Sam, right? Remember me?"

"Yeah, Jet." Sam smiled, "Though I've mostly got 'memories' of you from Dean's stories."

"That ain't right." Jet grinned and walked over, "Though whatever the case, nice to meet Dean's little brother." He stuck his hand out and, despite the strong grip he had on Sam's hand, it was a gentle shake. "Stab wound, huh?" Jet dropped down into the chair conveniently left there by the family. Sam nodded, "Sucks, right?"

"Yeah," Sam nodded again, or at least continued the nod. "It hurts a little more than some movies make it seem, less than others."

Jet laughed, almost a roar of a laugh at that. Hard to believe this guy usually lives in an apartment where there are people to be annoyed by his volume. "Like the movies where some guy gets stabbed in the gut and he just kind of dies in like three seconds? And I mean wherever in the gut, not just an important organ but anywhere. It's kind of funny."

"Not when you think those movies are realistic," Sam scoffed.

Jet paused and tilted his head with a sappy smile, "Aww, that's cute."

"Shut up, it is not." Sam turned away, embarrassed.

"Sammy's blushing!" Dean teased as he and Cas walked over.

"I said shut up!" Sam half laughed as he tried to remain serious.

Cas smiled and looked over at the taller man, "Hey, Jet."

"Nice to see you again, Cas." Jet gave him a quick wave. "Though I guess I should probably introduce myself to your mom a little more… proper-like." He slipped past Dean and walked down the hall and hopped back down the steps. "Nice meeting you, Sam!" he hollered over his shoulder

Sam shook his head, "Just as animated as you made him out to seem."

"Right?" Dean smirked, "Anyway I can smell supper so we should get you downstairs."

"I'm getting up," Sam slowly started to move, "Gotta pee, anyway."

Cas snickered and helped his brother out of bed, "I believe it."


	14. Justified

Cas had asked him to do nothing but Dean couldn't help it. He sat down with Jet in their apartment and they mulled through old friends numbers, trying to figure out whom they knew that could possibly find these people. Castiel's parents were monsters and if anyone deserved death it'd definitely be them. Dean and Jet had turned out just fine as young men, that didn't mean they hadn't done some ugly shit in their delinquent years.

"Uh guys?" Gabriel called from behind them, watching their mutton-heads attempt to work together.

"Not now, Gabriel." Dean waved him off, "We need to find these people…"

"Uh huh…" Gabriel muttered slowly, "So it wouldn't help if I said they lived in Topeka just off of Adams Street?"

Jet spun around, "What?"

"I found them." Gabriel waved the printed research, "They were let out of jail about five years ago, actually. Sentence ended and they went right back home."

"You're kidding me? They let freaks like that out?" Jet shook his head, "Fucked up."

Dean glared at the pages, "Alright, then we should get going."

Jet glanced at him and drummed his fingers on the couch, "But first I think we should probably tell your family."

"What? Cas told me not to do anything, I can't tell him." Dean shook his head.

"So the people who raised him shouldn't know what you're about to do? I think at least John would want to go with. It's a very personal thing for Cas, you really should talk to him." Jet frowned.

Dean stared for a moment, "Man, when the fuck did you get so wise?" He stood up and headed for the door.

"Uh, I've always been!" Jet yelled after him, hopping over the couch.

"Bull." Gabriel grinned.

"Dude, don't call me on it." Jet smacked his arm as he passed by.

"You coming Gabriel?" Dean looked over at his smaller roommate.

"Nah, I'd rather not jump in the middle of this, I don't really have strong feelings about it." He shrugged, "I'll be here eating stuff."

"Right," Jet chuckled, "Like always."

"Bye-ee!" Gabriel threw a sucker at Jet's head as the two exited the apartment, the candy hitting the door after it closed.

* * *

They pulled up outside the Winchester residence just as Cas was walking up the sidewalk from school. "Dean!" he jogged over and hugged his boyfriend, "I didn't expect to see you today." He beamed, "Though not that I'm complaining."

Dean kissed him and ruffled his hair; "Actually I need to talk to you guys about something. Come on inside."

Cas wasn't sure he liked the sound of it but he went in ahead of them, Dean smacked his ass on the way. "Perv," Cas swatted at him.

"You like it." Dean grinned.

Cas winked at him, "Love it."

"Dean?" John walked over, "And Jet, nice to see you again."

"Sir," Jet smirked, his hands shoved in his pockets.

"I need to tell you guys something, mind gathering everyone in the living room?" Dean asked.

"Sure," John looked toward the kitchen, "Hey Mary!" He shouted as he headed toward the living room. "C'mere!"

Dean realized after following John that Sam was already plunked on the couch, "How you doing, Sam?"

"I'm alright," Sam smiled up at him, "So… news?"

Mary joined them, giving a quick hello to Jet who waved back. Dean kissed her cheek as a hello and looked at everyone again, "Alright so the other day Sam, mom and Cas told me about Cas' past and where he came from. Cas told me not to do anything but I can't, I can't just do nothing while people like that are out there." He looked down at the upset expression on his boyfriend's face, "I'm sorry, Cas."

"So what do you plan on doing?" John asked flatly.

"Well we found out that they were finished their sentence five years ago and were set free, I didn't think they'd go back to their old house but they did. Jet and I are heading down there, we plan on giving them a piece of our minds and a little more." Dean's eyes hardened as he spoke, he didn't quite get the opportunity to stick it to Alastair though he probably would have been to weak to do it. At least now he'd be able to give something back to fucked up bastards like them.

"I should go then," Cas said quietly, "I… I should face them."

Dean rubbed his shoulder reassuringly, "If you want to. No one's forcing you, Cas."

"Doesn't matter, I should go." Cas shook his head.

"I'm coming with." Sam piped in, his features looking nearly as dark as Dean's.

"Sam, no. You're injured." Dean shook his head.

"So? If Cas is going I have to be there with him." Sam said sternly, stubborn as all get-out.

Dean sighed heavily, "Alright, but when things get rough I want you to stay in the car, okay?"

"What exactly are you going to do?" Mary sounded anxious.

Jet lifted his hands in a calming motion, "Nothing that we'll get in trouble for, alright? No worries, Mrs. Winchester."

She nodded, "Alright, and you can call me Mary." She smiled sweetly at him.

"Dad?" Dean looked over at John, "What're you going to do?"

John took a slow breath; he looked like he was mulling it over. "Count me in. I wanted to kill those fuckers the day I first saw Cas."

"Awesome, so mom we'll see you later." Dean smiled at her.

"I'll… make pie for when you get home." Mary nodded and stood up, "So everybody make it back safely, okay?"

"Of course," Dean kissed her cheek again, followed by Cas and Sam who did the same.

John hugged her and a light kiss on the lips. "No need to worry, Mary."

She nodded and hugged him back before looking at Jet as everyone headed out. "What? No comfort kiss?"

Jet stopped and looked at her, a smirk growing on his face, "Alright, come here you!" He stalked over to her and gave her a good squeeze, lifting her off the floor for a moment. He finished with a big kiss to her cheek," Mwah!" Jet laughed and quickly escaped after the others.

John insisted that Sam join him in his truck, it would be an easier ride for the injured teen. Sam pouted a little, "Fine… I'll see you guys over there?" Sam looked at Cas who nodded and gave Sam a gentle hug.

"Thanks." He whispered in his brother's ear.

Sam smiled, "You're welcome."

The trip there was quiet and bordering on tense. Jet had claimed front seat, despite Cas' complaints of boyfriend privileges. "I'd say 'bros before hoes' at this point," Jet glanced over at Cas, "Except you're a dude too so I'll have to incite the bro-code on this one; I called shotgun first so take it like a man and sit in the back, damn it!"

Cas frowned and crossed his arms, "Fine, I didn't want to sit next to Dean anyway…"

"Aw, why not?" Dean smirked, glancing in the rearview mirror.

"He's pouting man," Jet said triumphantly.

Cas was quiet for a bit before he mumbled something just loud enough for them to hear it, "I'm just scared…"

Dean signaled John and braked, pulling over to the side of the road. "Jet, backseat."

Jet got up, "Yeah I know." He walked around the car and hauled Castiel out who looked a little surprised. "Twerp," he ran a hand through Cas' dark hair, messing it up further.

"Thanks." Cas looked down, a little embarrassed.

Jet frowned and tilted Cas' face up to look at him, "You look me in the face when you thank me, dude." He smirked and hopped in behind Dean, shoving it with his knees.

Cas smiled and went around to the passenger side, slipping in beside Dean and shifting toward the middle. He rested his head on Dean's shoulder and exhaled slowly, steadying himself. Dean lifted an arm and put it over Cas' shoulders, squeezing him comfortingly. "It'll be alright." Cas didn't reply, just nodded his head slowly and nuzzled his face against Dean's jacket.

John pulled ahead of Dean and led the way once they reached Topeka, he knew exactly where they were going after all. He parked on the curb, giving Dean enough room to park behind him. They all got out and gathered around the passenger side of John's truck to at least make Sam feel included. "So how are we going about this?" Jet asked, arms crossed over his chest.

John looked at Dean, "I figure we should attempt to see if they know what they're about to hurt for."

"I want to talk to them." Castiel said evenly, his expression strong though it was easy to see the cracks in his mask. "I… I just have to."

"I'll be right beside you," Dean squeezed his shoulder again.

"Alright," John nodded, "But I want you to step back with Sam when we start in on them, alright?"

"But-" Cas protested though Dean placed a finger to his lips to quiet him.

"Sam needs company, Cas. Don't leave him out here by himself." Dean reasoned gently and nodded toward Sam, who sat smiling at his older brothers.

Cas hesitated but nodded, "Alright." He looked a little more relaxed knowing that he could just walk away, that he was told that he had to walk away after facing them. "Just for Sam, though." He smiled at the thumbs up Sam gave him for that.

"Of course." Dean grinned, "Now, let's go say 'hi'."

The doorbell was hit once, twice, and on the third ring a disheveled, pitiful looking man opened the door. Dean could see the resemblance to Cas immediately, dark hair and blue eyes with the same facial structure. The man looked them up and down and furrowed his brow, his brain taking its time apparently. "Who are you people?" He slurred.

Cas stepped forward and inhaled a shaky breath, "I'm Castiel," he watched as the gears turned in his father's head. "I was your son."

The man leaned back into the house, "Hey Cameron!" he called.

"What!" A shrill reply made the men at the door shudder, Cas' hand flailed to the side as it floundered for Dean, finding his arm and clinging to it.

"Some kid says he's ours!" Cas' dad shouted back and was promptly followed by the footsteps of his approaching mother, who was laughing dementedly at the thought.

"Couldn't be, only one ever got out." She stopped and looked down at the horrified teen who could only tremble at the sight of her. She looked him up and down and smiled disturbingly, "Don't recognize him though he does look pretty."

"You don't recognize me?" Cas managed to say, anger attempting to replace his fear. "I'm Castiel! I'm the boy who climbed out of the window in the basement, you don't recognize me?"

"Can't say I do," She reached toward him but her hand was stopped by Dean, his grip on her wrist tightened with each passing second.

"You have no right to touch him, bitch." He snarled and forced in way into the house, shoving her backward as he went. She hit the wall with a loud thud but he didn't give her any reprieve there, instead he grabbed her throat and dragged her further inside so the other two could get in. John dragged the father aside and gave him a lecture on parenting as he beat the living shit out of him.

Jet ushered Cas back toward the vehicles and went to Dean's car. "What are you doing?" Sam called over, leaning out of the truck to look.

"Lye." Jet smiled as he hefted two fairly large, unmarked cartons that Sam couldn't quite identify the material of. "Stay in the truck." Jet added as he walked into the open door, shutting it with his foot behind him.

Sam looked over at Cas who couldn't seem to stand still. Sam reached over and gently touched the side of Cas' face, causing the teen to look up suddenly. Cas' bottom lip quivered as they stared at one another and Sam opened his arms for Cas who promptly took the invitation.

Jet opened every window in the house as he passed them by, stepping over the beaten messes that Dean and John were happily creating. "Pouring the lye in the tub." He said nonchalantly as he headed for the bathroom.

John paused and looked up, "Lye? You boys bought lye?"

Dean shrugged, not taking a break from mutilating this woman while she was still breathing, "Jet had it ready."

"Do I want to ask?" John raised an eyebrow at that.

"Probably not." Dean slowed down and checked her pulse; she was dead. Her death couldn't have been comfortable, of course; he made sure of that. "Mine's done."

John looked down, "Yeah… I think he's been dead for a while, I just wanted to hit him some more." He glanced over at Dean who looked pretty torn up. "Hey," John called in a comforting voice, "Remember what they did to Cas, that's why we did this." He stood up and started dragging the father to the bathroom, "How about you go get us a saw? Jet and I'll take care of this."

Dean nodded and stood up. He'd never really done anything this brutal before, but thinking of what they did, what she did to Castiel… It was worth it. Dean walked away from the body and headed for the basement. He opened the rusted door and was hit in the face with a waft of some of the worst smells he'd ever had to endure. Dean coughed and gagged briefly; he lifted the collar of his shirt over his nose and started down the stairs.

' _These are the steps that Cas crawled up and was kicked down…'_  He thought dismally, finding that there was no light switch so he'd have to continue in the dark. Dean stood at the bottom of the stairs and it was only in that moment of silence that he heard something, something didn't sound remotely human.

An ugly sound of squeaks and groans, and a curdled squeal following. Dean flinched when he felt something bump against his boot; he looked down and used his phone for light. His heart nearly stopped when his eyes adjusted, there was a tiny pale hand outstretched on the top of his foot. "Oh my god…" He knelt down and looked closer at the body attached to that arm, it looked just like Cas did in those pictures except possibly a little older. It was a boy, Dean realized after gently picking him up. He squealed desperately, unable to really speak, scrawny fingers grasping at Dean's shirt. "Shh, shh…" Dean whispered, rocking him gently until he calmed down and clung to him quietly.

Dean inhaled an uneasy breath and started walking up the stairs again; he heard a tiny squeak behind him still and looked back. There were two more, one curled up and attempting to move and follow but it could barely lift its limbs. The other was breathing, that much he could see, but that's about all it did. Dean shook his head, "Oh god…" He hurried up the stairs, "Dad!" He shouted as he made it to the top, "Dad, help!"

John and Jet both hurried over to him and both reeled when they saw what he was holding. "There are two others down there…" Dean shook his head, "I… I can't…"

"Don't worry, man." Jet nodded, "I'll take care of it." He headed toward the basement and paused, "I'll look to see how many are down there, alright?" Dean nodded and Jet disappeared down the stairs.

John's eyes watered looking at the terrified child, "Cas was just like that…" He shook his head, "Take him outside and sit with him, alright? Let him play in the grass a little."

Dean nodded, "Like Cas?"

"Yeah, as far as I know the only thing that boy will want right now is to be outside." John ushered Dean out, "We're just waiting for the limbs to dissolve though it'll take pretty much all day. I'll call an ambulance, I can't see them coming in here to check for lye in a bathtub."

Dean nodded again and went outside and to the lawn. Cas and Sam both looked up then at each other. Sam started climbing out of the truck as Cas ran over to Dean, "Is… Is that...?"

Dean gently placed the boy into the grass, watching the wonderment grow on his face, "Yeah… there's a few of them down there…"

Cas covered his mouth, watching the awkward way the boy writhed in the grass, hardly able to roll over. Cas sobbed lightly and turned toward Dean, burying his face against the man's chest. It was all a little too much to bear at that moment. Sam slowly made his way to them and carefully sat on the lawn, watching the boy as soft gurgles of laughter, or what should have been laughter, sputtered out of him.

"So what's the plan with him?" Sam asked quietly, "Who's taking him home?"

"For now he's going to the hospital." Dean shook his head, "Dad called an ambulance so they should be here soon…"

Jet walked out carrying one more; his expression was pretty sullen as he placed the kid down next to his brother. The one Jet came out with was clearly on the verge of death, it's skin was translucent and looked like it'd tear at any moment. The limbs were curled inward and stayed that way, despite its attempts to move them. This one was younger, also a boy. Even though breathing looked difficult and painful the child managed a facial twitch that would have been a smile if his muscles worked right.

Dean looked over at Jet sadly and his friend only shrugged, "None of the others could have survived me picking them up. This one won't last very long but I figured he'd want to be outside at least once."

Dean nodded and clung to Cas a little tighter.


	15. Going Home

The ambulance had arrived to take the first child away though they could only shake their heads at the second. Dean held Castiel's hand as the men placed the first one on a stretcher; the child gurgled pathetically and grasped at Dean as they passed him by. Dean looked down, a little startled. "Are you his guardian?" One of the paramedics asked, a hint of anger in his voice.

"No," Dean shook his head, "But I'm the one who found him."

The two paramedics looked at one another briefly and gave a nod, "Alright, come with us please."

"What?" Dean looked at Cas then back at the two men, "Why?"

"Obviously the next little while will be a shock to him and it'd be easier if someone he wanted nearby was there." He explained.

Cas looked up at Dean, "Go, the rest of us will join you later, okay?"

Dean nodded, "As long as you're alright-"

"Go with my brother, damn it!" Cas shoved him, a light yet bitter laugh in his throat. "Please?"

Dean leaned over and kissed Cas' cheek, "See you later, gorgeous." He hopped into the ambulance and sat next to the tiny thing that he was now realizing really was related to Cas.

"What's going on?" John walked over from the house, looking down at the three guys on the lawn.

Jet looked over at him and pointed after the ambulance, "Dean and the kids are off to the hospital though the way they looked at one of them wasn't too comforting." Jet looked over at Cas and Sam, "What say you? Wanna follow 'em?"

Sam nodded, "But… What about the uh…"

"I'll stay back and take care of it," John waved his hand at them, "You boys go and keep Dean company."

"Will do, sir." Jet saluted and walked toward Dean's car, "Get in, teeny-boppers."

"Not teeny-boppers." Cas grumbled and received an agreeing nod from Sam.

* * *

Joining Dean in the waiting room only gave them a bit of news; the first boy was in intensive care and would probably be there for a long time while the other, though they tried their hardest, hadn't made it. The four sat together, Dean held Cas as they waited and Sam squirmed uncomfortably in his seat. Jet glanced at him, "You okay, Sam?"

He looked up and blushed, embarrassed, "Well… I uh… I'm just uncomfortable."

Jet nodded and got up, walking over to the check in desk he pointed back toward them, his charming smile in full swing. After a few words were exchanged he walked back to them, waving backward, "Thanks, beautiful!" He called.

"What was that about?" Dean raised an eyebrow.

"Get up, Sam." Jet motioned over his shoulder, "Nurses are going to get you a bed to lie down in while we're waiting."

Sam blinked in surprise, "Really? But there are actual people who need them-"

"Like recovering stab victims, now let's go." Jet pulled Sam up and started walking him down the hall, "Be right back, Dean."

"Sure thing." Dean looked at Cas who could only shrug in return. "I guess it's better that Sam lie down anyway, he's probably exhausted."

"Probably." Cas sighed and adjusted himself against his boyfriend, "So… When he's better, what should we do? Put him up for adoption?"

"I don't know." Dean shook his head, "We should at least name him though, right?"

"I… Guess, yeah. After what happened with me they probably didn't care enough to name these ones…" Cas inhaled shakily, "I can't believe that they continued to do it… Five years, how many children have they had? How many died?"

"Don't think about that, Cas. All you need to know is that you were saved, and so was that other boy. What should we name him?" Dean stroked Castiel's head carefully, slowly.

"Michael." Cas said decidedly.

"How come?"

"Because that's the name of one of the strongest angels and for him to have survived as long as he did down there… He's the strongest of his siblings." Cas looked up, trying to be strong. "So is that good?"

"I love it." Dean kissed his forehead, "Michael it is."

John showed up much later at which time they asked to have Michael transferred to a hospital in Lawrence so they could visit him more often while living at home. The decision, they were told, would be made later the next day after Michael had gotten a little more nutrients in his system and was deemed able to travel so the boys took the trip home to a very concerned and rather upset Mary.

"Where have you all been?" She asked angrily, "A phone call would have been nice."

Cas wandered over to her and gave her a hug and kiss on the cheek before he climbed the stairs to his room. Dean watched him go and sighed, "They're taken care of, mom. But we ran into a little… Problem, I guess."

"There were more kids like Cas," John added quietly, "We sat in the hospital waiting for news and I'm sorry that none of us thought to call you during that time."

Mary covered her mouth and looked up the stairs, "Did Cas see them?"

"Yeah." John nodded.

Dean sighed and hurried up after his boyfriend, "No worries, I've got him."

"Good." Mary nodded, "Alright so everyone get to bed, especially you, Sam."

Sam yawned, "I'm going, I'm going." He gave his mom a quick and tired peck on the cheek and a hug before dragging himself up the stairs to his room.

"And what are you going to do, Jet?" John turned to him.

"Well I guess that depends on whether or not Dean's going home." Jet shrugged, "I may end up on your couch."

"You probably will, I'll get some blankets." Mary trotted off toward the linen closet.

John watched her go, "You are one hell of a boy, you know that?" He looked back at Jet, a half smirk on his face.

Jet stood in silence, which was a very surprising thing for him. He wasn't used to getting praise from older people; it just wasn't normal. "What do you mean?"

"You went into that situation without judging or asking us any questions and took care of the 'after' while I hadn't even thought of it. You know how to take care of your own."

"Yes sir, I do." Jet's expression slipped away from the usual sarcastic look as he nodded, "I don't need to ask questions, all I know is that Dean felt strongly enough toward these people that he'd want them dead. I've never seen him act that way before now so I wasn't going to ask, I didn't need to."

"You're a good man, I'm glad Dean met you." John smiled.

"To be fair, if I hadn't met him I'd probably be dead so I'm really glad I met him too." Jet grinned in return.

"Got the blankets, I hope floral patters are okay?" Mary carried a stack of brightly coloured and girly blankets into the room.

Jet hesitated but shrugged, "Why not? They're just blankets."

"Good." She smiles and placed them on the couch. Jet glanced over at John with a 'why me' look on his face. The only thing John could do in return was mouth the word 'sucker', which earned him the right to see Jet's tongue sticking out at him.

* * *

"Cas?" Dean slowly pushed the door to Cas' room open, finding the teen curled up on a bed that was starting to look too big for him. "Babe, you okay?"

"Do I look okay?" Cas snapped bitterly.

Dean walked in and closed the door behind him, leaning against it momentarily. "Today was a long day, a lot to take in…" He waited for some kind of angry comment though nothing came. "Are you mad that I decided to look them up anyway?"

"No…" Cas sat up, "If you hadn't then Michael would probably have died down there, along with a lot more kid… Dean those were my siblings. My flesh and blood siblings… How many of them were down there?"

"I don't know, Jet went to check for all of them, not me. I only saw Michael and two others, one of them wasn't moving either so…" Dean sat on the bedside, his hand sliding over Cas' shoulder and massaging it gingerly. "Is that why you're upset?"

"Yes." Cas frowned, "Wouldn't you be? I never knew them but they were still family."

"And there's nothing you could have done to help them, don't beat yourself up over it." Dean insisted, "Cas we saved one of them today, I think that's more of a victory than anything else that happened."

"You think so?" Cas looked up at him, eyes big and teary.

"Yeah, I think so." Dean cupped his cheek, "So how about we lie down for a while? You need some sleep."

"You're staying?"

"Of course." Dean stood up and pulled off his jacket and layers of shirts, discarding them in a corner of the room. "I wouldn't make you go through all of that and then leave you."

Cas found himself licking his lips as he watched Dean's developed, masculine form slowly undress. They were no strangers to one another but this was the first time he was seeing Dean in the light of 'his boyfriend' so it was nice, really nice to be able to call all of that his. Cas laid back on the bed when Dean turned around, his slender body stretched across it as his eyes raked up and down Dean again.

Cas slipped out of his shirt and had a little help from Dean when it came to his jeans; "You're all mine now…" Dean growled playfully, nipping at Cas' swelling cock through the soft cotton of his underwear.

"Ohh…" Cas gasped, his hips bucked up from the sudden attention. "It's been too long…" He groaned more desperately.

"Way too long…" Dean grinned as he slowly slid the fabric off Cas' hips and over his dick, watching as it continued to rise. He ran his tongue up the shaft and took it into his mouth, enjoying the taste though the sounds Cas made were probably his favourite part.

Cas moaned and arched his back, he hadn't noticed before but he really needed this. Dean bobbed on Cas' cock until he tasted the bitter pre-cum leaking from the tip. He slipped off and glanced up at the exasperated look on Castiel's face, "You're beautiful." He smiled, his lips reddened and a little wet from the previous action.

Cas squirmed and thrust upward agitatedly, "Please just… god! Fuck me already!" He growled, that familiar gravelly tone etched in his words that Dean remembered from the bar the night they met.

"You got it." Dean found some lube with Cas' direction, top drawer of his nightstand. He slicked up his fingers and started the prepping process, one finger intruding into his boyfriend's ass and prodding around lazily. Cas gasped and moaned, his body shifting with every movement and glance off his prostate. Dean smirked, pushing in his second and repeating the action until he could insert a third finger.

"Enough! Give me your dick already!" Cas demanded.

Dean stopped playing around and penetrated Cas, earning a long and satisfied moan from his submissive partner. Dean eased into it, letting Cas revel in the feeling of being full and content before really pounding his ass.

"Ah! Ah! Harder! ...Nnf…" Cas grabbed onto Dean, his fingers dug in as he moved against Dean's thrusts, helping his man plow into him with more force.

Dean grit his teeth, holding on until Cas was satisfied. As soon as Cas shuddered into orgasm Dean followed suit, his pace increasing faster and faster until they both couldn't take any more. He collapsed on top of Cas, the teen gasped and gulped in air, trying to center himself again.

After a moment of shuffling about and cleaning up their mess they snuggled under the covers, Cas clinging to Dean like any insecure teenager might. "I love you." He whispered.

Dean smiled and stroked a hand through Cas' hair, "I love you too."

"I'd love it if you guys would keep it down." Sam grumbled from the doorway, hand resting on the door handle agitatedly.

"Sorry, Sam." Cas tried not to laugh, "I guess I got carried away."

"Yeah well I'm not the only one who heard you guys so keep it down, alright?"

"Will do." Dean smiled back, wondering if Sam found it at all weird now, knowing that they had been dating once before.

Sam closed the door and marched back to his room grumbling to himself. "Better you did it than me." Jet said with a smirk from the top of the stairs, startling Sam a little. "I would've jumped on the bed and that just might have been awkward."

Sam looked up into Jet's eyes; he was kind of glad there was someone who was still taller than him at this point. "I guess. Why would you jump into the bed?"

Jet shrugged, "More shock value. They wouldn't have expected it."

"They didn't expect me either, so I think we got enough shock out of them with less energy spent." Sam laughed a little.

"Except you're hurt so you spent more energy walking over there than I would have jumping on them so I'm not so sure you're right on this one." Jet grinned, "Anyway, see you in the morning." He strolled back down the stairs, taking them as quietly as he could. He was a big guy, stomping down them was just too damn easy.

"Night…" Sam trailed off, watching as Jet disappeared into the living room. He sighed and went back to his bedroom, his hand gently running across the stitches on his abdomen.


	16. Extending the Family

Dean opened his eyes drowsily, stretching for a moment and realizing that there was a weight on his arm. He looked down to see a beautiful face nuzzled in close to him, still asleep and dreaming. Dean smiled and kissed Cas' forehead, "You really are gorgeous," he whispered softly. It was hard to believe that Cas used to look just like Michael.

Michael! Dean looked at the time; he was supposed to go see him in the hospital. It was already noon, they'd slept in. "Aw c'mon!" Dean groaned and pulled away from Cas who flopped down onto the bed again.

"You said it," Cas growled, sleepy eyes blinking open and glaring at him. "What the fuck? I was sleeping."

"Yeah well it's noon and we never went to see Michael, they probably already shipped him over here." Dean said as he pulled his clothes on, "Come on, Cas."

Cas sighed and buried his face into the pillows, "How about you go and see if he's in town or not, I'll sleep some more…"

"Lazy." Dean smacked his ass, "Get up."

"Alright! Alright, geez." Cas stretched and sat up, "Ooh that feels good…" he smiled, "You did me hard, I can still feel it."

Dean smiled and ruffled his hair as he headed for the door, "I don't care how dirty you talk to me, you still have to get up."

Cas pouted, "God you're mean."

"God's got nothing to do with it." Dean called, already in the stairwell.

Cas shook his head and got up, "You left the door open! Now I'm totally flashing Sammy!" He shouted after he noticed the cold breeze.

"I'm good." Sam said from across the hall, "Not looking."

Cas laughed and pulled his clothes on, "Why did you let us sleep that long?"

Sam smirked at him, "What makes you think I didn't need to sleep in too? I was kept up quite a while last night."

"Cute." Cas walked to the stairs and hopped down them where Dean was getting an update from Jet.

"So you're saying dad's doing it?" Dean asked, and if Cas had to judge by the look Jet was giving Dean, he'd have to say it was probably the third time.

"Yes, dude. Your dad got up super early and headed out to the hospital. I only know this because a. I was on the couch and it woke me up; and b. your mom knows about it." Jet sighed, "What's the big deal?"

"Well… He wanted me." Dean kind of motioned toward himself and used his fingers to simulate the clinging hand.

"Uh huh, and you were unconscious." Jet pat his shoulder, "Get over it, the kid will still want you when he sees you."

Dean sighed and nodded. He fished in his pocket for his phone and started dialing John's number, "I've gotta ask…"

Jet rolled his eyes and looked up at the stairs where Cas, and now Sam, were standing. "Good afternoon, guys." He gave a smile and a short wave.

"Morning, Jet." Cas said casually, strolling down the steps and over to Dean, for him it was morning and that's all that really mattered.

"Good afternoon." Sam smiled and followed Cas into the living room, glancing briefly at Jet and looking away again. Dean's friend had a nice smile.

"Wow, you all like to sleep, don't you?" Mary kissed Sam's cheek quickly, going up on her toes to do so. "I was ready to make everyone breakfast but Jet was the only one up."

"Not that I don't sleep a lot too," Jet added, "Just when she offered waffles I couldn't really say no, could I?"

Dean walked out of the room when he finally heard a click, "Dad?"

" _Hello."_  John said simply,  _"Dad here."_

"What's the news? How is he?"

" _We've moved to the Lawrence hospital, he still needs a lot of help but they're all things they can do here. He was asleep when we moved so I'm not sure he even knows that he's somewhere else."_

"Good, I'll be right there." Dean hung up and looked over at the others, "Who wants to go see Michael with me?"

Cas yawned again, "Can we eat first?"

Dean felt the gurgling vibrations in his stomach and had to consider it, "…Alright fine, we'll eat first."

"Score!" Cas hurried to the kitchen, "C'mon, mom! Quick, make me food before Dean changes his mind!"

Mary rolled her eyes and followed her son, "Of course, dear."

"Me too, please." Sam called after her as he settled himself on the couch, slowly easing down until he was safely smushed in. He looked up at Jet then over at the TV as if he were just looking around the room, "So… did you ever get that job with the library?" He asked as uncaringly as he could.

Jet mostly missed any tone Sam might have had, "Yeah, for a bit." He dropped down onto the couch and relaxed, as if he'd never been on a nicer couch in his life. "But I found out she hired me for the thrill and while normally I'd keep a job where the boss was hot and expected sex from me."

"You quit?" Dean looked at him, "Dude, seriously? You kind of need money for food and shit."

"Yeah well I wasn't comfortable with the fact that she was married, and I didn't quit she fired me." He laughed, "It was kind of funny really. I was like, 'You're married?' And she was all, 'Does that matter?' 'Uh, yeah it fucking it does.' And she fired me. Of course I still managed to call her husband about it so our dear librarian slut may end up without a husband."

Dean snickered, "Nice, m'ang."

"M'ang." The two fist-bumped and grinned.

Sam stared at them, "What was that?"

"Just a…" Dean looked at Jet who shrugged, "Just a thing we do."

* * *

Breakfast was rushed and Dean ushered them out the door, "Let's go, let's go!"

"Why are you so pushy with this?" Sam stopped at the door and stared at him.

"I just want to see him."

"But why? He's not your kid." Sam raised an eyebrow.

Dean was quiet, not sure how to answer that. "It's because he feels responsible for him," Jet called from beside the car, "Dean's the one who picked Michael up and Dean's the one who rode with him to the hospital the first time."

Sam glanced out at Jet and nodded, starting to get it. "Oh, so you feel like you have to take care of him?"

"Something like that…" Dean shrugged, "Anyway, move it!"

Running into John at the hospital was something Dean had expected though he wasn't sure how he felt about the expression on the man's face. "What's up, dad?" Dean raised an eyebrow, "Is he alright?"

"Yeah," John nodded slowly, "But I think you should go see him."

Dean continued the raised eyebrow look as he moved to the room they were keeping Michael in, the scrawny little thing peered up when the door creaked as Dean entered. "Hey, little guy." He smiled, watching those pale blue eyes as they stared him down.

Michael sat frozen for a moment until Dean was closer. He made some sort of howling sound as he reached for Dean, now that he was a little better he'd been physically able to produce tears and so his eyes started to water. "It's okay," Dean hushed him as he made it to the bedside, letting Michael crawl up against him and weakly sit there, leaning on him.

"He really does prefer you," the doctor said as he walked in, "He hasn't done that with anyone else."

"Really?" Dean looked over sadly, "This poor thing… Is he going to be okay?"

"Well physically we need to keep him here quite a while, mentally I'm not sure." The doctor sighed, "When he's a little better I would suggest hiring someone capable of teaching him."

Dean nodded and squatted down so he was more level with Michael, "You'll be okay," He rubbed the boy's head, watching the way Michael leaned into it, rubbing his face against Dean's palm. "You like that, huh?" Dean smiled, his other came around and pulled Michael into a hug, a very gentle and delicate hug, "Yeah, when was the last time somebody held you?" He whispered.

Cas and the others walked in, the dark haired teen leaning over to see his brother, "So he's alright?"

"Not yet, but he will be." Dean said optimistically.

"There's something I think we should discuss," The doctor spoke up again. "The point of who's he is."

Dean looked up at John who was looking down at him expectantly. "Wait, me!" Dean snapped his gaze over to the doctor who was also looking at him. "You can't be serious! I don't know how to take care of a kid!"

"You're the one he does the best with and I think we should do what's good for him at this time." The doctor explained.

"Mary and I would help, of course." John added, "And since you and Cas were the ones who named him it just seems right."

"What? Me too?" Cas sputtered.

"You two are dating, right?" John looked at him, "So yeah, it'd be a responsibility for both of you."

Cas looked down at Michael, frail and clinging to Dean for dear life. "But… But I'm just 17!" He shook his head, "I can't… I don't know…"

Sam placed a hand on his shoulder, "It'll be alright, Cas. You guys can do it."

Cas glanced at him with wide and uncertain eyes. He then looked to Dean to see a similar expression of 'I'm not fucking ready for this'. "Don't worry," The doctor spoke up again, "He will have to be here in the hospital for a long time, nearly a year before you can take him home. Plenty of time to prepare yourselves."

Dean nodded slowly, "Right… So in other words we'll be in here everyday to see him, gotta send someone to teach him and…" he sighed tiredly, "This is going to be a long year…"

John rubbed him on the head, "We'll figure this all out together." He said reassuringly.

"Thanks, dad." Dean gave him a half-smile, which he then turned toward Cas, "We're in it together, Cas."

Castiel shifted his weight a little and took a long and uneven breath, "Oh god…"

* * *

The following months slowly unraveled in stress and soon enough everything seemed to fall into a routine. Dean and Cas would often go to see Michael, at least once a day. The rest of the family went to see the boy too, of course, though they pushed Dean and Cas to do it much more often. After the first two months Michael was doing a lot better, enough that Dean, with financial help from John, hired a tutor to start teaching Michael the basics.

Whenever Cas would visit he'd bring Sam and for the first little while they hung out with Dean though Dean started to notice that, as the visits went on, Sam was there to talk to Jet more and more often.

One of those days the four of them had plunked down on the couch to watch a movie, Sam inching just a little bit closer to Jet every opportunity he had. Mid-way through the film he was flush against Jet, Jet's arm up and around the back of the couch to give him room. Dean glanced at them and couldn't help a snicker.

"Do you see what I see?" Dean looked at Cas with a bit of a smirk. His boyfriend glanced and grinned wildly, those gorgeous blue eyes glinting with a sort of mischief Dean could only recognize as the activation of 'big brother mode'.

"Sammy," Cas nearly purred, "Do you have a thing for Jet?"

Sam's face flushed red as he glared over at Cas though he didn't know what to say to that, especially not in front of the guy. This, oddly, seemed to be news to Jet who blinked a few times in surprise and looked back at the teen sitting next to him. "Really?"

Sam's head snapped back up instinctively to face him though Sam hadn't quite factored in the part where he was still blushing. "Uh…" He could feel his face heating up even further as he fumbled for words, "I uh… I-"

Jet gently lifted Sam's chin and kissed him smoothly, eyes closed, his mouth moving like a professional kisser, if there were such a thing. Sam moaned lightly into it, giving in to the feeling instead of trying to analyze it. Jet broke it off after a brief make-out session and smiled charmingly, "Got your words back yet?"

Sam's eyes slowly fluttered open again, he could hear his heartbeat in his ears, pounding rapidly. When had he started thinking like this? It could have been a number of occasions, really. When he'd met Jet, when he'd heard the stories of who Jet was or what he'd done, though Sam was pretty sure the time he started really liking Jet was while he was recovering. Jet visited him in his room though they hardly knew one another; he had shared stories and experiences and asked about Sam's.

"Apparently not." Jet chuckled, watching Sam's dazed stare. He brushed the hair off Sam's forehead and planted a kiss there as well.

Dean grinned, "So are you guys going out now?"

Jet shrugged, "Depends,"

Sam seemed to snap out of it, looking up at Jet a little anxiously. "Depends on?" He managed to say, surprising himself with how much the thought of a 'not dating' answer worried him.

"Depends on what you say." Jet looked back at him, "Can you go out with a guy like me?"

Sam smiled a little, "I think what you meant to ask is 'will I', and the answer's yes." He reached up and took a firm hold of Jet, pulling him down into another kiss.

Cas clapped and cheered, joined by Dean shortly after. "Sammy's gonna get some!" Cas laughed, "Finally!"

Sam blushed again and smacked Cas, "Shut up!"

"So that's a no?" Jet smirked.

Sam fidgeted awkwardly, "I… I like to hold off on that, to make sure that the relationship isn't just a-"

"So you don't trust me, then?" Jet raised an eyebrow, "Man, I've been hanging around you for months now, I figured you'd have gotten a clue about me." He teased, poking Sam's shoulder.

Sam turned toward him, considering that. They had been seeing one another a lot already and Sam knew that Jet wasn't that kind of person. That and Dean would probably be pretty pissed off if his best friend did that to his little brother. "You're right," Sam admitted after a long pause, "I'm sorry."

"No worries." Jet smiled, "So since I've seen this movie before," He hopped up and climbed over the back of the couch, "We're gonna take off." He reached down and easily lifted Sam up.

"Have fun," Dean grinned, "But dude, be gentle."

"I know," Jet hauled Sam to his room and shut the door.

Cas laughed, "Oh Sam, he's about to get more than he bargained for."

"What do you mean?" Dean ruffled his hair.

"I mean that Sam came here today expecting it to be like every other day, just staring awkwardly from afar. I'm glad to be a pestering older brother, even if it is only by two months." Cas snuggled in close to Dean, watching the movie again.

"Yeah," Dean smiled and leaned back, "Though today would be more awesome if this movie weren't so boring…"

Cas took that as his cue and his fingers slipped to Dean's zipper, easily pulling it down in a single motion. Dean looked at him with a bit of surprise though he made absolutely not move to stop him. Cas smiled as he wriggled Dean free, licking at the tip of his cock and slowly bobbing his head further down until he'd managed to get it all in.

Dean groaned loudly, his mouth falling open in a gasp as Cas' masterful tongue worked its magic. That kid had experience with this sort of thing, Dean knew that much, however he really needed to praise Cas a little more often. He'd never received blow jobs this good before, though it could also be because he loved the man tucked between his legs with, lips wrapped around his dick.

"Fuck… Cas, you're incredible." Dean moaned, his hips thrusting up little by little though Cas had a firm hold on them to keep them down and avoid being choked. When Dean finally shuddered and came Cas swallowed it, licking up the excess that he may have missed. Dean groaned roughly as he took Cas and laid him down on the couch instead, unbuttoning his jeans and forcing them down. "Your turn."

Cas bit his lip excited and spread his legs, one he hung up over the back of the couch to get out of his way. "Do it, baby…" he sighed, anticipating the warm, wet suction he was about to receive.

Just before Dean put his mouth on Cas they both heard Sam cry out, loud moans and pleasured yelps. Cas chuckled and relaxed again, "I'm glad he likes it."

Dean smirked and did what he'd meant to which earned an accepting growl from Castiel. Dean teased Cas instead, working him and getting him close but stopping right before Cas could topple over the edge. "Come on…" he whined, hips thrusting upward, fingers curled into the couch. "Please…" Cas whispered nearly inaudible.

"What was that?" Dean slipped off his cock to look up, "I didn't quite hear you."

"Please." Cas whimpered louder, looking up at Dean with a desperate expression, "Please, Dean!" he cried as Dean went back to work on him, "Oh god!" Cas' back arched and Dean finally let him release, lapping it up messily, letting some of it splatter onto his face as his hand came around to milk it the rest of the way. Cas dropped back down onto the couch, loosely resembling a discarded shirt in the way he just hung off it.

"Sorry, couldn't help it." Dean smiled, wiping his face clean.

"…massive dick…" Cas grumbled.

"Thanks." Dean grinned wider.

" _You're_  a massive dick." Cas said louder and clearer, though he couldn't help but laugh after. He sighed and kissed Dean, "I love you."

"Love you too." Dean kissed him back.

In their silence they could hear the activities in the other room a little easier, Sam was still on the verge of screaming and the sounds of the bed rocking against the wall were unmistakable. Cas snickered again, "Either Sam's got better stamina than I thought or just a great reload time."

"Nah, Jet's got great stamina and Sam's over-sensitized by now, I'd imagine he's come at least twice though." Dean smiled, "Probably getting pretty hard again."

"Alright, let's not talk about our brother like that," Cas tried to wave it off, "Getting weird."

Dean smirked and kissed down Cas' neck, "Whatever you say, beautiful."

Cas blushed and ran his hands through Dean's hair. While he was really enjoying their time together he couldn't help but wonder what it'd be like at the end of that year. They would be bringing Michael into it, raising him pretty much. It was something it seemed both of them were mostly trying to ignore and pretend wasn't going to happen, neither felt ready and the thought stressed them both out to no end. As much as Castiel knew they should prepare for it he couldn't really think of a good way to do that, not now anyway.


	17. Along the Way

Sam let out a light 'oof' when Jet dropped him on the bed, eyes shifting upward and staring at the surprisingly gentle expression on Jet's face. "You keep backing away from this because you're worried that sex is all someone's after, that's your reasoning right?" Jet pulled his shirt off and tossed it to the side, his hands immediately finding Sam's as well to do the same.

Sam helped remove the article of clothing and shrugged a little, "Well… Yeah. I don't want to get involved with someone if it'll end up hurting after."

"But you ended up hurting anyway, so what did you accomplish? Nothing, not even relief." Jet undid Sam's belt and jeans, tugging them down with a bit of effort. "I mean you at least jacked off, right?"

"Well yeah, of course." Sam blushed, not sure if he should really have answered that. "I…" He closed his eyes and tilted his head back, "It was a different kind of hurt that I ended up with, not as bad as what I was avoiding."

"But you were stabbed because of that hurt so it's probably not as small as you think." Jet leaned over him, large hands touching the side of his face and trailing down his jaw and neck. It sent shivers running all over his body, little bumps prickling his skin and making him want to sigh a little louder. "My theory? You're just scared of sex."

"That's stupid." Sam frowned and turned his head away, he could still feel Jet's touch and it made him tingle, how could that be fear? But part of his mind had to consider it, his heart racing wasn't always because he was excited, the concept and idea of what would happen after really made his stomach twist. Sex itself was important, it was intimate and whoever he did it with was supposed to be  _the one_. He knew that sex wasn't the magical thing that all stories and fantasies made it out to be, but that didn't change his mind on the subject.

"Is it?" Jet urged the conversation a little more, his smile curling at the corners of his mouth as he reached down to fondle Sam's junk through his underwear, his fingers curved around the soft but slowly stiffening surface. It was warm and welcoming as Sam's legs spread, just a little but almost instantly.

Sam tensed instinctively and moaned deep and heavy, his hips rolling upward to encourage more, to get a better feeling. "Ohhh…" He hardly recognized his own wrecked voice, and Jet had barely touched him. Sam looked up with his pupils blown wide, seeing how the other male looked like a predator but still carried that comforting, compassion that made Sam feel safe. He felt like he could really say anything. "I… I don't know how to…"

"Is that why?" Jet scoffed softly but there was nothing mocking in his tone. Sam relaxed, exhaling lightly as Jet's hands drifted over his body tentatively. "No worries, babe, I'll do it all. You just relax."

Sam nodded and laid his head back again; he closed his eyes and took a slow and deep breath. Jet gently pulled Sam from the safe and warm feeling of his boxer briefs, tossing those to the side with everything else. Sam didn't have to open his eyes to know that he was now fully naked in front of someone; he could feel it in the chilly air on his hot skin, scanning eyes that were taking in every part of him. Someone was paying attention, taking notes and remembering how he looked, self conscious tendencies were hard to ignore. "Relax, Sam." Jet hushed him, and he realized he'd tensed up again.

"Sorry…" Sam exhaled raggedly, shifting a little and trying to will his muscles to relax.

"Nothing to apologize for." Jet said smoothly, his hand, warm but a little rough, started coaxing Sam's cock slowly, his thumb drifted over the tip a few times as he pumped it gently. Jet moved lower, closer to the half hard flesh, he took it into his mouth slowly, careful to make it good enough for a first timer. Sam moaned through it, his fingers pulling a little at the sheets as he flexed his toes. It sounded held back, like he was embarrassed to enjoy the feeling. Jet didn't bother to address the behaviour and continued, smirking as he felt it hardening.

A few minutes was enough to have Sam's hips bucking upward, his fingers moved through Jet's hair like it'd somehow ground him back down from his high. It was terrifying, exhilarating and he'd had no choice but to arch his back to the pleasure. "Ohhh! Jet! Ah!" Sam cried out, getting a little louder with each moment of added pressure. He was completely lost to himself in the feeling, his eyes squeezed shut so his other senses couldn't drown out what he wanted to know, what he wanted to experience.

Jet paused briefly to take in the sight, watching Sam's flushed face, hearing his pleas and mumbled expletives, it was all making Jet harder with every second. He wet his fingers and went back to the blowjob he'd started though now he began something a little new for Sam's enjoyment. There was a sudden gasp and a sharp sucked in breath as hot, slick fingers traced around a tight, puckering hole. Sam whimpered pathetically when he felt the pressure of one finger, slowly slipping inside him, it was so careful and gentle that he questioned who was touching him. Though it was only one finger he couldn't take it anymore and cried out again, with enough volume that Dean and Cas in the other room could have heard him. Sam was barely aware of how loud he'd gotten, the only things on his mind were words like 'more' and 'please' and 'Jet'.

Jet smiled even wider around the dick in his mouth, his tongue swirling around and massaging the stiff and trembling shaft. He didn't know when he'd learned to do that so well but he iddn't care to reflect on it. Sam's hips were jerking sporadically, his legs flexing and starting to writhe as the heat in his body swelled. Jet knew an oncoming orgasm when he saw it, and Sam was definitely in the throws of it. Sam panted heavily and a sharp whine pierced the air between them, Jet felt the hot, bitter-sweet release hit his throat. He nearly coughed but managed to swallow most of it, though he did have the idea to spit a bit of it onto his hand. He quickly moved his fingers back to Sam's entrance and used some to help the lubricating process. Sam was spent for the moment but it didn't stop him from mewling and squirming as Jet stretched and widened his hole. By the time Jet was using three fingers Sam hardly noticed, he just wanted to be closer, to be something more to Jet.

"You really are gorgeous, you know." Jet whispered roughly as he withdrew his hand, leaving Sam feeling empty and needy.

Sam breathed deeply, his chest rising and falling rapidly as he started to settle, he could hear the wrapper of a condom, he could imagine Jet's hands peeling the latex over a heavy, blood swollen cock. He couldn't take it anymore, he groaned and tensed his legs, toes curling and uncurling in anticipation. He opened his eyes again and looked down, imagination wasn't enough he wanted to see it, to have a clear image of Jet's dick before he put it anywhere near his ass. "Fuck..." he breathed the curse so easily and it felt right in that moment, Jet's body was curved just right, his face falling into a pleasured expression as his hand jerked up and down his own cock. Jet looked up at Sam and smiled, a little glint in his eye when he realized Sam was watching him.

"You ready?"

"Definitely." Sam whispered, swallowing past a lump in his throat.

Jet got right to it and pushed inside him, brushing by his prostate with the first thrust. At first Sam couldn't make a noise, only open his mouth and arch his body again. "Sorry," Jet groaned, "A little too fast."

"It-it's okay." Sam gasped, his legs wriggling to get used to the new sensation. He'd never felt so full or content before, it was incredible and for as long as he lived he didn't want to forget it.

They waited a moment, Jet rolled his hips forward very slowly, pushing deeper and listening to the longer and more desperate groans Sam made. They rocked together for a long time, just connected that way and though Sam had already blown his load his reload was coming on again. Even though his body was tired and he'd never felt anything like that before, his mind kept the anticipation up. He was excited to be with Jet, to feel him inside and just move. It was a slow build for Sam but he could hear it in Jet, though Jet's stamina was actually quite astounding he was getting so close. Sam did his best to clench his anal muscles and a flustered smile reached his lips when he heard the stuttering gasp his lover made. "You know," he breathed heavily, rocking his hips up in time, "You're actually kind of adorable."

Jet moaned softly, trying to hold it back a little, Sam had just gotten hard again and he wasn't about to just let it go. "Hush," he panted and realized just how far he was. His legs trembled and his thrusts started to become less planned. "Fuck..." Jet gasped a little louder, he'd lost the control over his expression, he knew hte face he was making and knew that it was exactly what Sam was talking about. Sometimes he'd get lost in it, the orgasm and ecstasy that came over him once in a while was good enough that he just didn't care to keep it together. Sam got to see every little inch of him that night, it was like thunder clapping in their ears, the sound of their hearts racing as their bodies crashed together over and over. 

Sam leaned back for him, arching again and keening in desperation. He was reloaded and just like before easily brought to the edge, teenagers had very little stamina if any, something Jet was momentarily thankful for. Sam screamed that time, he came first again and left a mess between them. Jet didn't care, he gripped a littler tighter and moved a little faster, he could hear the sounds coming from his own mouth but he didn't care about that either. Sam's legs wrapped around him as his orgasm slammed into him like a wave, repeatedly and without mercy. Jet bit his lip and shuddered through it, Sam's hands lazily brushing through his hair and slowly bringing him back down. Jet was shaking enough to notice and so was Sam, they stayed together for a few moments before carefully separating.

It was a night neither of them would ever forget, getting to see so much and learn so much about the other that made things between them just that much sweeter. Sam kissed Jet's neck and nuzzled down against it, enjoying his post-coital buzz as sleep overcame them both. 

* * *

Graduation day came, Sam finished with honours and scholarships to beat the band, Cas barely got a passing grade. They both stood in their suits, Cas' a little more casual than Sam's, smiling for the cameras that John and Mary had bought.

Jet stood next to Dean, both wearing suits as well and looking very out of place. "Dude…" Jet muttered with a snicker, "Dude remember our grad?"

Dean snorted back a laugh, "The one we barely managed to get?" He looked over at Jet with a grin, "Yeah, I remember it."

"Remember the old toupee our English teacher had?" Jet smirked.

"And how we each stole it as we walked by him, every time we walked by." Dean laughed, "God, he hated us."

"That's putting it nicely." Jet chuckled.

"Dean!" Cas ran over and threw himself onto Dean, "Smile!" he turned toward John and Mary and both boys grinned wildly as Jet stepped out of the way.

"You too," Sam took Jet's hand, smiling shyly.

"Photo-op with sons and their boyfriends, huh?" Jet smirked, his hand snaking around Sam's lower back, pulling him in closer, "Sounds fine with me."

The photo was taken, several times because either someone blinked or Jet and Dean did something completely retarded. Eventually they did get a keeper, though if you'd have asked any of the boys they'd gotten a keeper each time.

Castiel kissed Dean on the cheek and smiled, "I love you."

"I love you too." Dean smiled and returned the gesture sweetly though it quickly burned into passionate where Dean's hands rummaged beneath Cas' shirt.

Cas moaned into the kiss and pressed himself against Dean, one leg shifting between his partner's to grind against a more than willing leg.

"Boys!" Mary swatted at them, "Not now, not here, okay?" She scolded.

"Sorry mom," Dean leaned back, removing his hands that had made into Cas' pants.

Cas blushed and took one of Dean's free hands, "Right, sorry."

Mary rolled her eyes, "Kids."

John nodded, "I totally agree."

"Sam!" The principle called over, hurrying as quickly as his pudgy self would allow. "Sam Winchester, hold on."

Sam looked up curiously, "Yes?"

"You haven't received this yet," the man smiled, handing Sam a very official looking letter. "I'm sorry it seems so unprofessional, it was mixed up in a lot of other things but the secretary found it."

Sam smiled and opened it, wondering what it could possibly be. As he pulled it out the pages he saw the insignia for Stanford University. He hurriedly read through the first letter and covered his mouth in shock.

"What?" Mary leaned over, "What is it?"

"It's from Stanford," Sam looked up in total disbelief, "Before the end of August they want me to move down there; I'm getting a free ride."

"You're kidding!" John exclaimed and snatched the pages from Sam, reading them himself.

"Oh! I'm so proud of you!" Mary squealed and wrapped him up in a hug.

"Free ride?" Dean stared, "Like, it's all paid for?"

"Exactly," Sam smiled, standing up straight again once Mary was off. "It means that I'll get to go to one of the best Universities in the country for free."

"Congrats, bro." Cas clapped him on the shoulder, "So how long do you figure you'll be away?"

"Well…" Sam shrugged, "I know that it'll be a few years before I can actually get into a law school... so I guess if I get into a good law school in the area it should only be a couple years."

Jet smiled, a little sadly. "That's pretty incredible. You're gonna be great."

Sam smiled back, the up and coming separation lost on him at that moment. "Thanks, I can't believe I got it!"

Everyone celebrated Sam's achievement, excitement and pride were two very big points of that night. Jet watched with a silent ache, Sam would have a lot of different experiences at Stanford and he'd end up growing all on his own. Jet wasn't an idiot to real life, far from it. He knew that a person changed between the end of high school and the following few years and that Sam would be no different. He'd grow up and their time together would be more of a fond memory. Instead of bringing this up, however, Jet just smiled and celebrated with the rest. Why ruin a great evening with something like that? Besides, Jet could never think to hinder someone else just because he didn't want to lose them.

* * *

The day came a little sooner than they had expected, at the start of August Dean and Cas went into the hospital expecting to see Michael like always, the boy was looking a lot healthier though still pale as hell and only recently had he been able to start eating solid things properly. His digestive system had recovered and was working almost normally, he could walk on his own two legs and though he didn't have much to say he was talking a bit as well.

"Hey, buddy!" Dean walked in excitedly, his face lit up brightly for the boy.

Michael brightened immediately when he saw him, "Dean!" He squeaked, arms stretched and reaching for Dean to scoop him up, like always. Bundled in Dean's arms again he nuzzled his face against the soft fabric of the man's shirt.

"Not excited to see me?" Cas smiled, poking at Michael's head, now with a neat and even patch of black hair.

Michael peered up at him shyly, "Hi, Cas."

"That's better." Cas kissed his cheek.

"I'm glad you two both came," The doctor walked in behind them, a clipboard in hand. "Ready to sign the release forms?"

"What?" Dean looked over, a heavy feeling in his gut, "You mean… like today?"

"Well yes."

"I thought you said a year," Cas added, remaining calm though his mind was far from it. "We still have a few months…"

"Well I said about a year, depending on when he got better." The doctor explained, "He's well enough now that you can take him home."

Cas swallowed and nodded, "Right… Uh, I guess we'll…" He looked at Dean for some help.

Dean took the clipboard and signed the release form; "We'll take him with us then. Anything we should know?"

"Well we've been doing our best with it though potty-training has been difficult for him to master. He may get a little confused with the location of your restroom so be patient with him. As well here's a list of things you need to make sure he eats during the day, it'll really help." He handed Dean the list and a few other instructions. "If there are any big questions go ahead and phone the hospital, most of us are quite aware of little Mikey, here."

Dean nodded, "Thanks," he handed the papers to Cas, since Michael was still hanging off of him. "For everything."

"No worries, glad to help. Take care of him, now."

"Definitely." Dean headed out the door with Cas in tow, both of them silent as they walked.

"So… what do we do? Should we move in together?" Cas finally said.

Dean looked at Cas, finding that his boyfriend was pretty pale as well. "You look ill." He reached over with his free hand and brushed Cas' hair lightly, "I don't think either of us has to move anywhere. You should mostly live at home with mom and dad, keep your stuff and your room so you have a place to escape to."

Cas looked up worriedly, "But what about you?"

"I have work," Dean smiled, "When I'm at work I'll be dropping him off with mom, since she stays at home normally anyway. So you'd have the option to either stay home or at my apartment."

Cas nodded and reached over, fingers finding the fabric of Dean's shirt and holding onto it, "Thank you." He whispered softly.

Dean smiled at him and looked ahead as they exited the hospital, Michael barely moving the whole while he was carried. As much as Dean played up the 'we'll be fine' thing he knew that none of this would be as easy as they tried to make it out to be. But as long as they did it together there wouldn't be an issue.

They went to John and Mary's place first though the ride could have gone easier. Cas held Michael who started crying when he was denied access to Dean, he clearly didn't want to sit was Cas. "Just take him!" Cas handed Michael over to Dean angrily when they got out of the car; "Fuck!" he cursed and walked inside.

Dean rubbed the back of Michael's head as the boy curled against him, frightened. "It's okay, Cas is just really stressed out right now." Dean walked in after his incredibly angry boyfriend, the very same one who stormed to his room.  _"He's not taking this well at all… I'll have to talk to him when I get a chance."_  Dean thought worriedly.

"What happened?" Mary asked as she walked over. Michael looked up at her and squealed, drastically trying to find a better place to hide on Dean though his choices were limited. "Oh!" Mary stepped back, "You brought Michael home! I'll go get dressed up." She hurried upstairs to get into her 'look like a man' clothes.

Dean sighed tiredly and went to the living room, "It's okay, buddy. That's mom, she's a good person."

Michael trembled and nodded slowly. Dean had to wonder if the doctor managed to keep every female in the hospital away from the poor kid, though of course he must have considering Michael hadn't died of fright yet. "Dean…" Michael squeaked softly, tugging at him, "I'm… I'm…" he rubbed his face against Dean's shirt again, shy and embarrassed.

"Are you hungry?" Dean asked, petting the fuzzy mess of hair Michael had. The boy nodded quickly. "You can ask for food whenever you want, little guy."

Michael looked up and then back down awkwardly, his fingers fidgeted with the hemming of his shirt. "'Kay…"

Dean smiled, "You'll open up, yet."

"Okay," Mary stood in the doorway with John's clothes on making her look much less feminine, she'd lowered her voice to the best of her ability though all Dean could really do was laugh. There's no way anyone would fall for that. Mary walked over and knelt next to Michael, adjusting the baseball cap she'd put on to hide her long hair, "Hello, little boy. What's your name?" She said in that ridiculous tone.

Dean stood corrected because Michael didn't show a hint of panic looking at her, "I'm Michael." He said shyly, his body turning left and right as he curled his toes oddly.

"I'll be damned…" Dean muttered.

"Hi Michael, I'm Mary." She smiled at him and gently took his tiny hand and moved it slowly like a silly little handshake. "Nice to meet you."

Michael giggled and buried his face against Dean again. "He's pretty cute," Dean smiled, rubbing the kid's head again. He hadn't realized how often he'd done it really; it was a comforting gesture that he just liked to do.

"Cas was like this too," Mary stood up again, "He hid from me, screamed when he saw me, cried and once he even fainted. I did what I could to hide my gender one day and was finally able to pick him up. He eventually realized that it was me and connected that I wasn't a horrible person with the fact that I was female so I could do normal things again. It'll just be an interesting year or two for me, depending on how long it takes him to get over it."

Dean nodded, "Alright, in that case I guess you don't have much of a choice but to wear this stuff." He laughed a bit, "By the way, I think Cas should stay here for the next little while at least. I'll take Michael home with me and when I go to work I'll bring him here, that okay?"

"Sounds good, gives Cas a sanctuary." She nodded, "He's not taking this very well."

"No, he isn't." Dean sighed, "Mind watching Michael for a bit while I go talk to him?"

Mary shook her head, "Go on."

Dean kissed her cheek and hurried upstairs, strolling over to Cas' room. "Cas, you in here?"

A tuft of black hair sticking out from under a pillow was his first clue as the answer to his question. "What do I do, Dean?" Cas sat up, knocking his mound of pillows over as he did. "He hates me, how am I supposed to help raise him if he hates me?"

"He doesn't hate you, Cas. He was just scared of the car ride and he feels most comfortable with me. And he's only better with me because I'm the one who first brought him up from the basement, there's nothing to get worked up over." Dean sat down beside him and kissed his cheek. "Michael needs to warm up to everyone, not just you."

Cas sighed, "I know… I guess…" he fumbled with the blanket and kicked it off the bed, "I'm just… so not ready for this."

"Neither am I, but we're here now. Just have to make the most of it."

Cas nodded, "I'll have to give it my all, hopefully that'll be enough…"

Dean watched as none of the stress left Cas' features. "What else is bugging you?"

"This kind of makes us parents, doesn't it?" Cas looked up dismally.

"Kinda… yeah." Dean looked down at the sheets, thinking about it. "Does that bother you?"

"Do you think… I'll be better than my parents were?" Cas bit his bottom lip in an attempt to stop it from trembling.

Dean's head snapped up again, staring at Cas in disbelief. "You were raised by mom and dad, John and Mary Winchester. You'll be an awesome parent." He forced Cas to look him in the eye, "You hear me?"

Cas nodded but a sob escaped him anyway, "Are you sure?" He sniffled, "That I won't go insane and…"

"And what? Lock him in a basement and leave him there? I don't think you could ever do something like that. You're a beautiful person, Cas. And I don't just mean that physically. You're kind, sensitive and caring, more so than a lot of people I've met. If either one of us would be a horrible parent it'd be me, I'm the one who was raised by a psychopath."

"No, Dean." Cas shook his head, "I know you, you'd never do something like that."

Dean nodded, "You're right, I wouldn't. And that's including my upbringing, so you know what? Screw your parents, they're gone and can't do anything to anyone anymore. Why worry about what they did and if you might be like them? Do you do drugs?"

"No…"

"Do you have a partner who doesn't satisfy you?"

"No."

"Are you insane?"

Cas laughed a little, "Some might say so, but no."

"There you go," Dean smiled, "A few of the big things that made them monsters aren't things that you've experienced so I really doubt you could somehow turn into them over night just because there's a kid running around. Remember, you're also an older brother."

Cas nodded, "Yeah… he's my little brother so…" he smiled, "So I have to take care of him."

"That's right." Dean's grin widened and he kissed Cas' cheek again. "Now let's go downstairs and play with that little brother of yours."

Castiel nodded and they went to do just that.


	18. I Guess We Have To Grow Up

Bringing Michael home wasn't so bad except Dean had neglected to mention that he was bringing the boy home. Cas insisted on carrying Michael, that he had to make an impression sooner or later and Michael would live if Dean didn't do it once or twice. Dean didn't argue, letting Cas hold Michael was perfectly fine with him, especially if it made Cas happy.

"But I want Dean…" Michael mumbled, though despite his attitude he still clung to Cas' shirt as he climbed out of the car.

"Too bad, kiddo. You're stuck with me." Cas said determinedly, putting Michael on the ground and squatting in front of him, "I'm just as safe as Dean, I promise." He said reassuringly with a smile.

Michael's eyes shifted focus from one of Cas' eyes to the other as if weighing the possibility. He looked up at Dean who nodded his confirmation, "Cas is actually a lot nicer than me." He said as he locked his door.

"Really?" Michael looked back at Cas.

"Really." Cas nodded, "Now come on, sweetie. Let's go inside." He stood up and stuck his hand out for Michael to grab, which he did. Cas grinned at Dean with an air confidence and strolled careful and slow, making sure Michael could keep up, into the apartment building.

"WHAT THE HELL!" Gabriel was the first one to notice their arrival and he was far from ready to see the scrawny, nearly mutant looking child.

"Shut up, Gabriel." Dean glared at him, "This is Michael, and he'll be staying here."

Gabriel gawked at him, "You're kidding me?"

"Nope," Dean shook his head, "Get acquainted."

"Hey, did you bring little Mike?" Jet walked over from his bedroom, pulling his shirt on. Sam was close behind, attempting to fix his hair.

Dean just smirked at them, "Yeah, obviously here he is."

"So they let him out of the hospital already, huh?" Sam looked down at the feeble child who seemed to only want to hide behind Dean's pant-leg. "He does look a lot better."

"I envy him," Cas looked down when Michael looked up, Michael hesitated and was confused as to who he should stand behind now, in light of the new information about Castiel being nicer and just as safe.

"Why do you envy him?" Gabriel dared to ask, keeping his cool better than even he had expected.

"Because no one took pictures of him first thing," Cas raised an eyebrow, "It sucks to be able to see how bad you were."

Sam smiled, "It's in how you see it, really."

"How so?" Cas looked grumpy for a moment.

"It could be a reminder of how far you've come." Sam gestured toward all of him, "You here now, you've graduated, you're a functioning member of society, I don't see what the big deal is."

Cas shrugged, "Yeah, and I had it pretty good, what with you, mom and dad." He smiled, thinking about it, "I guess I can't really complain if the only thing that bugs me are a couple of bad pictures."

"Exactly, I've probably got a million hideous pictures of me floating out there." Jet added with a grin.

"Could be because you're just hideous." Gabriel sneered and managed to duck just in time for Jet to miss when he threw the conveniently placed remote.

"Ass." Jet frowned.

"You love me." Gabriel grinned as widely as he could.

"Yeah, don't bet on it." Jet laughed, putting his arm around Sam's waist. "Anyway, so he's staying here?" he looked at Dean for the possible truth of the statement.

"Yeah, Michael will be staying here with us. I'll bring him to mom and dad's while I'm work so you guys don't really have to worry about babysitting." Dean explained as he glanced down toward where Michael had been standing behind him; where Michael no longer was. "Michael!" Dean scanned the room quickly and relaxed when he saw Cas sitting with a very tired and sleepy Michael on the couch. "Oh…"

Cas smiled over at him, "No worries."

Dean's expression softened, considering all of Cas' concerns earlier it was really nice to see him getting along with his little brother. Cas fit right into that role, more perfectly than he seemed to realize.

"Sounds awesome, and don't worry about that babysitting thing, you can leave with us sometimes." Jet motioned toward himself and Sam.

"You don't have a job yet?" Dean looked at him dishearteningly.

"I'll be starting construction pretty soon, actually." Jet said huffily, "I just kind of walked up to them and said 'hire me, I'm awesome' and they did. It was pretty cool."

Dean laughed, "Only you, man. Only you."

The first two weeks seemed to breeze by; when Dean would drop Michael off to be with Mary Cas would go out job hunting for himself. John and Mary weren't made of money and couldn't really afford to help as much as they had been. Plus they'd soon be spending a ton of money on buying Sam new things to travel with, helping with buying new clothes for Michael and the right food for him to eat and et cetera. Cas figured the least he could do was to get a job himself.

Michael cried the first day alone with Mary and the Impala drove away, Dean and John heading to the shop to work on cars together. Of course John hired his oldest son, why wouldn't he?

Mary cleared her throat and picked Michael up, shushing him and trying to tell him that everything would be okay. That first day wasn't easy for either of them. Once he was done crying he hid under the couch and stayed there until Cas walked in from his job hunting. "Cas!" Michael cried and ran across the house to glomp the young man's legs.

"Hey there, sweetie." Cas smiled and scooped him up, hugging him tightly. "How was your day?" Michael shook his head and buried his face against Cas' neck. "That bad?" Cas asked sounding surprised. Michael nodded. "Awe, why?"

Michael glanced over at Mary and quickly buried his face again. "Nnnn…." He whined incoherently.

Cas looked at Mary, "Sorry."

"It's alright." She sighed, "He'll get used to me."

"Michael, that's Mary," Cas remembered vaguely that she was introduced to him that way, "Remember? Mary's nice."

Michael looked up again and stared at her for a little bit. He then looked at Castiel who smiled reassuringly, "I promise, we would never, ever leave you with someone mean."

Michael nodded sheepishly and turned back toward Mary, "Sorry." He said softly.

"That's okay, Michael." Mary did her best man voice as usual.

The second day was much better; he didn't cry and hide though he didn't approach her either. He stared at her vacantly from across the house though he made sure she was where he could see her. Mary smiled and waved, being extra friendly though it didn't seem to help because he just sat there.

By the end of the first week he'd started to follow her around the house, very close behind. He watched what she did and asked her questions, what she was doing, why she was doing it, what it did that she was doing, why it mattered that she did it and a bunch of other things. She didn't dare remove any of the masculine items, it was still the first week, but she did go back to walking like herself.

Two weeks in she could speak normally and he didn't panic or freak out. Instead he giggled and said she sounded funny. For Mary, the days she spent with Michael were like re-living the moments she'd had with Cas and she had to admit that she loved being a mom. Though the plus side with Michael was that there was no little Sam screaming at the sight of him, it was a big help.

* * *

"I can't believe I'm actually going to Stanford!" Sam said excitedly, folding clothes and placing them in his suitcase along with a bunch of other things.

Jet sat on the side of his bed watching him, nodding vaguely. "Yeah, kind of cool."

The end of August had hit them; they were just over a week away from it, which meant Sam would be on his way soon. Over the last month and a half Jet had spent as much time with Sam as he could; teaching him, learning from him, and mentally preparing himself for the goodbye. Here they sat now, a few hours away from Sam boarding the first plane to California, a few hours away from not seeing one another for years.

"I'm going to get into the best law school I can, afterward. I'll have to study extra hard to see if I can get a good enough scholarship after Stanford-" Sam's ramble was interrupted when Jet stepped in front of him, blocking his way from doing anything else. "Jet?"

"You know what this means, right?" Jet said stoically, his face neutral, closing in on intimidating.

"I'll be able to become a lawyer…" Sam trailed off, seeing that it was the wrong answer by the look on Jet's face.

"Close," Jet leaned in and kissed Sam's cheek, "It means you're leaving, for a really long time."

"I'm coming back." Sam said determinedly.

"In about 4 or 5 years, at best." Jet shook his head, "You can't have time for long-distance relationships."

Sam furrowed his brow, "Hold on a second, are you saying I can't have time or I won't have time? Is this because you don't think I can do it or are you saying it because you don't think that  _you_  can do it?"

Jet paused, noting that Sam had learned well from him, "You know I'd wait for you." He said simply.

"Then wait." Sam demanded, "I'll visit during holidays and who knows, you may be able to fly out and see me once in a while too. It's not impossible, Jet."

"You're something else, you know that?" Jet laughed, "Alright, you've got a deal."

"Good." Sam smiled and leaned in to kiss him, "Don't be stupid anymore, okay?"

"Not possible, I was born this way." Jet smirked, "But I won't think like that again, promise."

Sam nodded, "Right, well I'm pretty much done packing, you coming with to the airport?"

"Duh."

* * *

"My little Sammy going on a big trip!" Cas fake bawled as he threw himself onto Sam as they were saying their goodbyes.

Sam smiled and hugged Cas tightly anyway, despite the stupid show he was putting on. Damn drama queen of a brother. "I'll miss you too, Cas." He whispered.

Cas nodded and kissed Sam's cheek, "Don't be a stranger, send me emails and stuff." Cas smiled and stepped back, letting everyone else get their goodbyes in.

Dean was one of the last ones, he stopped in front of the taller male and they stared at one another for the longest time. "Take care of yourself." Dean finally said, "I want to get to know you again when you come home."

Sam smiled, "You'll have to take me out for coffee or a movie."

"You'll have to order your own frilly coffee," Dean laughed, a bit sadly. "I love you, Sam."

"I love you too, Dean." The two hugged, Sam resting his head against Dean's and vice versa. "Take care of Cas, okay?" Sam whispered.

"You know I will." Dean said softly before the stepped back again.

Everyone waved after Sam until they couldn't see him anymore, Mary had to be led away by John, Cas took Michael's hand and followed. Jet stood staring at the last spot he'd seen Sam, not sure what he should do next. Dean put a hand on his shoulder, "It'll be alright, you know he'll come back."

Jet nodded, "Yeah, and I know we're trying the long-distance thing…" He looked down for a moment then back up at Dean. He'd opened his mouth to say something sarcastic or reminiscent of a typical tough-guy but he had nothing, not really. Instead he closed his mouth and turned to walk away in silence.

Dean watched his best friend's back, knowing that he was hurting and knowing even more that there was nothing that could be done about it. He looked back at the terminal gate, wondering if maybe Sam was come back saying 'nah just kidding, I'll stay here with you guys.' Out of all the things that Dean knew, though, that was something he understood even better than everything else; it would never happen. It'd be months before any of them saw Sam again. It wasn't a big deal; most people would say that about a few months apart. But to someone who during the last year had just reunited with that guy, or for someone who was dating him, it felt like an eternity.


	19. Time Moves Quickly

"Dean! Dean!" Michael booked it across the apartment, stumbling over some misplaced boots as he went. He closed his eyes shut, expecting to meet the floor very soon, very personally, but two strong hands caught him before that happened.

"Whoa, little dude." Jet hefted him up, "What's so important you gotta wake pseudo-daddy?"

Michael lifted the phone, "Cas is calling!" He smiled excitedly.

Jet looked the 7-year-old over, it'd been nearly a year since he came to live with them and he had to say things had been going pretty smoothly. He ate right, when not left alone with Gabriel, he got his exercise and he was even learning things faster and faster. Jet smiled and tossed the boy over his shoulder, snatching the phone from his hands as he did so, "Let me see."

"Ahhh! Jet no fair!" Michael squirmed though he was firmly held in place. "Big jerk."

"That's what the 'j' in Jet stands for," Jet smirked and lifted the phone to his ear, "Hello."

Cas' laughter was unmistakable on the other end, "Hey, Jet. Is Dean there?"

"Dean-o's a-napping," Jet went and stood next to his door, "But I can wake him up for you, if you'd like."

"Nah, let him sleep. I'll come over and wake him myself." Cas conceded, "I was only going to ask him for a ride anyway."

"Alrighty," Jet walked back toward the couch, "I'll leave him then, see you in a few."

"See you soon." Cas hung up, Jet tossed the phone down and lifted Michael up, a very prominent pout on his face.

"Awww! I wanted to keep talking to him!" He whined, kicking his legs.

"Well he's coming over so you'll get plenty of time to-"

"Cas is coming!" Michael squirmed harder, which prompted Jet to put him down and watch. Michael ran around gathering things to show Cas as if he hadn't seen him a day and a half ago.

"What the heck, little dude?" Jet watched as Michael motored around the apartment for ten minutes straight, "You say him just the other day…"

"But I didn't get to show him anything!" Michael yelled, holding a gathering of different arts and crafts things he'd made, "I saw him at grandma's and I didn't bring anything."

Jet just grinned, it was amusing every time someone referred John and Mary as 'grandparents' considering none of their kids really had any children of their own, just adopted one. And really Michael was Cas' brother so calling them mom and dad seemed appropriate too, Jet figured that explaining their little family set up would confuse some people more than they'd expected.

After about fifteen more minutes Jet buzzed Cas in and Michael stood patiently by the door. The emergence of his older brother was cause for a giant smile and a swarm of babbled sentences. Cas smiled and knelt down, placing a basket he'd been carrying onto the floor next to them. "Wow, did you make those?"

"Yeah..." Michael suddenly looked away shyly, "Do you like them?" He asked quietly.

Cas looked at him warmly, it was still odd how Michael could be so excited and jumping around and go straight to shy and humble. Obviously the arts and crafts meant a lot to him, "You know what? I love them." Cas took the one with himself, Dean and Michael depicted made of macaroni, squinting at it as if he were judging it, "This one's my favourite." He announced after a moment, "I especially like how Dean's head is made up of more macaroni than mine."

Michael beamed, seeming to feel much better about his art. "Really?"

"Yep, and the glitter all over the place, makes it look very special." Cas kissed his forehead and stood again, rummaging with the shoulder bag he'd gotten into the habit of bringing with him and put the craft away. "I'll put this on my wall later."

"You love it that much?" Michael looked astonished; none of his art ever made it onto a wall! Only the fridge. "Dean never puts my stuff on the wall!"

"Hey," Jet nudged Michael with his foot, "That's only because we can't put stuff on these walls, its an apartment."

Cas smirked, "You could get some fun-tack, you know, that blue sticky stuff that teachers have?"

Jet stared at him and after a moment put his finger to his lips, "Shhh."

Cas laughed and headed toward Dean's room, "I'll be right back," He dropped the basket on the counter as he passed it.

"Sure," Jet looked at the woven thing curiously, "What's with this?"

"Not for you, leave it." Cas scolded and disappeared into the bedroom.

Dean was definitely asleep, if his light snoring was anything to go by. Cas sashayed across the room and gently climbed into bed, he leaned down and kissed Dean's cheek softly. "Baby," he whispered, nudging his man, "Wake up, Dean."

Dean's eyes opened, barely, and he looked Cas up and down. He smiled and rolled over, "Hey, Cas."

"Napping, huh? Getting old there, Dean." Cas smirked, snuggling down next to Dean.

"Just a little." Dean yawned and kissed Cas repeatedly. He was still surprised at how much Cas had filled out since they had met, it was even more surprising that Dean had ever assumed Cas was an adult in the first place. Granted Cas hadn't gotten taller or anything but something in his face changed, he just kept getting more and more beautiful as he aged. "You know, you're like fine wine…"

"You've said that," Cas smiled, "And I know." He sat up and shoved Dean a little, "Now come on, I want to go out."

Dean rubbed his eyes, "Where to? I'll have to ask Jet to watch Michael a little longer."

"We're taking Michael with us, actually." Cas climbed out of bed and headed for the door, "I packed a lunch, let's go to the park."

Dean looked up and shook his head, "Damn you're hot, I can't believe I got lucky enough to be with you."

Cas rolled his eyes though Dean caught the pink in his cheeks, "Just get up, Romeo." He walked out the door, leaving it open. "Go get him, Michael." Dean heard him say.

"Oh boy." Dean started getting up when Michael ran in. "Hey buddy."

"Guess what?" Michael clambered onto Dean's bed and jumped up and down a bit, "Guess what?"

"What's up?" Dean ruffled the mess of black hair on Michael's head, figuring it might be time for a hair cut.

"Cas said he'll put my picture on his wall!" Michael beamed, "Can you believe it?"

"No way, really?" Dean feigned surprise, "Wow, he must really like it."

Michael nodded and hopped down, "Cas says you have to get up now."

"I'm up, I'm up." Dean changed his shirt and headed toward the door, "Come on."

Jet looked at them from the couch, a smile on his face. "So picnic, huh?"

"Yep," Cas picked up the basket, "Sorry Jet, you can come on the next one."

"No problem," Jet waved it off, "I'm gonna sit here and watch a movie or something."

"You should go out," Dean looked at him, "Go see a movie in a theatre or something."

"So I should go pay money to watch a movie alone? Nah, I'll sit here." Jet gestured for them to go, "I'm fine, now get lost." He smirked though Dean didn't buy it.

Dean looked at Cas who stood by the door, Michael's hand firmly attached to Cas' free one. "Coming?" Cas asked.

"I guess…" Dean looked back at Jet who had turned back to face the TV. They walked out the door and toward the car, Dean furrowed his brow, "I'm worried about him."

"Jet's dealing in his own way, alright? It makes sense that he'll miss Sam, the only thing that'll help him now is to see Sam and we can't really give him that." Cas smiled a little, "Though the end of exams was yesterday so we may be seeing Sam pretty soon."

Dean smiled, "He's coming home?"

"For summer? Yeah, pretty much. He'll be heading back at the beginning of August though, gotta have some relaxation time with peers too, right?"

"Right," Dean nodded, "Nothing's worse than going through school without friends, no one can really help you out when you need it. Does Jet know?"

"Obviously not otherwise he wouldn't be sulking." Cas smirked, "At any rate it'll be fine."

Dean smiled and put his arm over Cas' shoulders, "You're awesome."

"I know it." Cas kissed his cheek and went to buckle Michael in the backseat. Dean glanced down and let out a low whistle at the sight of Cas in jeans, he was entirely unable to resist the urge to slap that ass.

"Jerk," Cas closed the door and grinned at him.

"What? I didn't do anything wrong." Dean leaned over and caught Cas up in a more passionate kiss, holding his boyfriend in place and sliding his hands up and down the fine body he'd been appreciating from afar.

Cas smiled after they broke it off, "You're being very affectionate today."

"I'm like this everyday." Dean smirked, "Though it is my day off so that probably has something to do with it."

"Evidently." Cas walked around the car and hopped in.

While the happy family was out on their goofy little picnic, Jet sat inside and stared at the TV like a zombie, wishing that it would actually melt his brain and he wouldn't have to think anymore. He sighed heavily and dropped his head on the back of the couch, closing his eyes for a little bit.

After a few minutes, or hours, he couldn't be sure since he may have dozed off, he heard the door open. "Back already?" He called casually, "I figured it'd be longer than that."

"I thought my welcome would be a little warmer," A familiar voice said from behind him.

Jet spun around and smiled, Sam stood in the doorway, kicking off his shoes. "Hey… I thought you were Dean, he and Cas went for a picnic and-"

Sam strode across the room and cut him off with a kiss, swinging a leg over the couch and pushing Jet down into the cushions, "Just shut up." Sam said between kisses, his breath warm and body pressed against Jet's, hips starting to grind forward. Jet smiled and pulled Sam a little higher, adjusting their position together.

"I missed you," he said as his hands slid up into Sam's hair, gripping it and pulling him closer.

Sam gasped and continued his pace, "I missed you too." He moaned lightly and sat backward, "Bedroom?"

"You know it," Jet grinned.

* * *

Cas leaned against Dean, their day had been pretty successful, Michael thoroughly enjoyed the park and the picnic lunch, as did Dean. Cas looked at him, his fingers tracing Dean's knuckles gingerly, "So… I was thinking,"

Dean turned toward him, "Oh boy," his smirked and kissed Cas' cheek, "What about?"

"We should move in together."

"Alright," Dean adjusted his position, taking the discussion a little more seriously, "So my apartment's kind of small, especially since Michael kind of sleeps in my room already. Where did you have in mind?"

"Dad mentioned a small, cozy little place that was up for sale on the edge of town, maybe we could go check it out?" Cas stared up at him intently. "Later, I mean."

"Definitely." Dean nodded.

A couple days later and they finally found the time to go and look at the damned thing. Dean finished work and picked Cas up from the apartment where Jet and Sam had been lounging, leaving Michael with Mary for a little while longer. The building was small but big enough for their little family, the yard would need some work but other than that it was perfect. Dean walked inside and smiled, glad to see that they'd have a basement at least.

"So?" Cas smiled and looked at Dean, "Good enough?"

Dean nodded, "Looks that way to me, your thoughts?"

"It smells funny but I think after we live here a bit we'll get used to it." Cas crossed his arms, a bit of grin on his face, "I have to wonder how bad the floor will creak when we do it, though."

"Whatever, Michael will be scarred for life but he'll get over it eventually."

"You can't say scarred for life and then say he'll get over it," Cas laughed, smacking his arm.

"Hey! You're supposed to back me up with this stuff, don't question me!" Dean snickered, wrapping his arms around Cas and tickling his sides. His boyfriend screamed and struggled though Dean was far stronger.

"Okay! Okay! You win!" Cas cried.

"That's right, I do." Dean kissed down Cas' neck, "What's my prize?"

Cas giggled and turned around, kissing Dean back, "My undying love and affection?"

Dean smiled, "I guess that's good enough."

"Ass," Cas laughed and walked out of the house.

"You have a nice one." Dean followed close behind, tapping Cas' rear playfully.

* * *

"Moving?" Jet looked up from his spot on the couch with Sam happily lying across his lap. "That's pretty cool, where to?"

"A little place on the edge of town," Dean smiled, sitting down and relaxing, "I didn't want to tell you unless we were getting it for sure."

Jet nodded, "So I'll be popping in once in a while," He smirked, "You know, eat your food, use your stuff."

"Of course." Dean laughed, "If I could have it my way you would move in with us."

"Would be kinda weird," Jet grinned wider, "Don't think I could handle the constant screwing around though, too immature for me."

"Sure," Dean rolled eyes, "obviously."

Sam smiled, "When are you guys moving?"

Dean and Cas looked at one another, their smiles widening, "Well, now." Cas looked at Sam, "You guys aren't doing anything, wanna help?"

It was Sam and Jet's turn to look at each other and both sighed heavily. "Yeah, I guess we do." Sam started getting of the couch, "Manipulative jerks."

"Always." Dean chuckled, "Let's go get some boxes."


	20. Castiel's Hand

Moving in together proved beneficial for Dean and Castiel, they could wake up together and go to bed together every night, everywhere Dean went it was almost always with Cas and vice versa. Cas started buying little things to please Dean, an outfit or a toy, or possibly a large television, depending on their funds.

Of course Michael was at a loss for words in his astonishment, he now had his own room for the first time ever. It was amazing, incredible and a bunch of other made up words that basically meant the same thing. He had space for his own Batman-fandom items, like a Batman inspired bedspread and wallpaper, toys and action figures and so forth. Though Dean was against it, Cas made sure to get Michael his own giant box filled with Legos. Every kid had to have Legos in their childhood memory bank.

As promised Jet visited; though his visits were much more frequent when Sam had gone back to Stanford. He helped out with Michael, giving Mary a break from the little tyke just as much as Dean and Cas. He personally took it upon himself to teach little Mike all the key points of being a dude and/or bro in all aspects of life, Dean couldn't believe half the shit that came out of Michael's mouth sometimes.

Even though they had paid for a private tutor for the longest time -the same tutor who ended up just wanting to teach Michael in the evenings for free, it was hard not to fall in love with this kid- Dean and Cas knew that sending him to school would have to happen very soon. Michael was about 8 years old and it was about damn time that he go, he was doing much better and in Dean's opinion, he was totally ready.

The day they marked on the calendar as Michael's first day of school, after putting him through some placement tests, Dean had to pretty much drag the boy out of the backseat. "You'll be fine, Michael." He strained to do this without hurting the kid.

"No! I wanna go to grandma's!" Michael cried desperately, "Nooo!"

Cas sighed and crawled into the backseat from the other side, slowly plucking Michael's fingers off the car's frame one at a time. "You'll be fine, sweetie. Everyone has to go to school, they're all as scared as you are."

Dean put Michael on the ground and started leading him by the hand, "Cas is right, plus you're a tough little guy, I'm sure it'll be easy for you."

Michael pouted, a sight Dean was never tired of seeing. It was awesome that Michael had the muscle ability to do it, and the extra skin or even that his skin was elastic enough to do it. Everything about Michaels' facial expressions were a miracle to Dean, which of course took the strength out of every single one of Michael's attempts at wriggling out of things. "But what if I won't be okay?"

"Of course you will." Cas took his other hand, "Why wouldn't you be?"

Michael didn't really have an answer to that, "I dunno… Maybe the teacher will be a criminal or something and start phoning his mafia bosses and-"

Dean laughed, "Yeah, that'll totally happen."

"And then Batman will come and save you," Cas added, giving Dean an unimpressed glare for his laughter.

"You think so?" Michael asked, his face bright and expecting.

"If that's what your teacher starts doing then definitely." Cas smiled down at him, "Now come on, it'll be more fun than you think."

Michael nodded and give in to them, they hadn't ever really been wrong before so why would they be wrong about school?

Dean and Cas walked out of the school after leaving Michael with a warm and welcoming teacher. Dean sighed, "I feel bad for leaving him there…"

"Me too, but that's because we both hate school. I told Sam about it and he was all 'he'll love it there!' But you know, that's just Sam." Cas shrugged.

"He almost done school yet?" Dean raised an eyebrow.

"Almost, I guess." Cas looked up at him, "He's applied at a bunch of different law schools. Mostly though I've noticed he's bugged Jet to go and live with him while he's down there."

"Yeah, Jet mentioned it the other day." Dean shifted oddly, "I want him to go. As much as I want him here so I can see him I want him to go and be with Sam more. It's not like they'll be gone forever or anything."

"Exactly," Cas nodded, "I think it'll be good for them, considering they've been doing this long-distance thing for far too long. Honestly I'd lose my mind."

"Likewise." Dean kissed Cas' cheek affectionately. "So we both got the day off for this, what do you want to do?"

"Sex." Cas said evenly, those lusting blue eyes raking over Dean before stopping on his face.

"Magic words, baby." Dean grinned and took Cas to the car, "Can't do that on school property though, lets find somewhere more comfortable."

Cas smirked but agreed, getting arrested wasn't something he had on his to do list that day.

Dean parked behind a mostly abandoned building and popped in Led Zeppelin, the same album that Cas had chosen on their first night together. "Ooh, nostalgic." Cas said as he climbed over the seat into the back, his shirt slipped off and tossed to the side. Dean groaned as he watched the cute little strip tease Cas was putting on for him, long elegant fingers popping the button on his jeans and slowly zipping them undone.

"I want some of that." Dean stepped back there, keeping his head low and watching his footing so as not to step on his boyfriend. Clothes were discarded and making out ensued. Though it felt hot and heavy they moved slowly, carefully feeling and relearning the parts of one another that they had seemed to neglect for the longest time.

Dean shifted positions with Cas, hands trailing up the most perfect hips he'd ever known while Cas re-explored Dean's muscled torso. "You know," Dean said breathily, "If I'd ever end up back in the same hour that I first saw you, I wouldn't do anything differently."

Cas paused and looked down at Dean's sincere expression. He couldn't put his finger on why but he felt the sting of tears behind his eyes, "Somehow I'm not so sure." He said with a gentle smile.

"What do you think I'd do?" Dean raised an eyebrow.

Cas leaned down, his palms pushed down into the leather of the seat as they held up his weight, "I think," he whispered, his mouth close enough that their lips brushed past one another as he spoke, "You would have sought me out a little bit sooner." He kissed Dean slowly and as he backed away he'd caught Dean's lip between his teeth briefly. "And maybe our first time wouldn't have been over a dumpster in an alley."

Dean smiled, "Do you regret it?"

"Never." Cas moaned huskily, rolling his hips down and rubbing himself against Dean's leg.

Dean slapped Cas' ass and squeezed it after impact, getting a surprised but pleasured yelp from his lover. "Bring lube?" He asked with a smirk.

Cas chuckled seductively and leaned over and plucked a tube out of his shoulder bag, "Of course, always do."

Dean shuddered; he loved hearing that rough voice of Cas' and it was even better when Cas intended to talk dirty to him. He took the lubricant and coated his fingers, his eyes shifted up to see if Cas was ready for it though the way Cas had adjusted his hips and thighs told him all he needed. He started with one, no matter how much they'd done it in the past Cas was still pretty damn tight to start with and beginning with two fingers would hurt.

Cas trembled a little, his legs tightening against Dean's as he gasped. "Fuck, that's cold…" he sighed, rocking back and forth to help Dean out, this wasn't the best angle for prepping, after all.

"You should keep this stuff in a warmer place then." Dean smirked, watching the expressions twitch and shift on Cas' face.

"Mmm…" Cas didn't really care to respond; he'd gotten to the point of pretty much sitting on Dean's hand to push it deeper. "Two fingers, babe." He moaned and moved a bit faster while his hand started stroking and pleasuring himself.

"Stop touching your dick and I will," Dean grinned.

Cas looked down at him and saw he was serious. "But…" he whined though he knew there was no point in it. "Fine." He said and dropped his hand. Just as he did so Dean inserted the second finger and slowly continued to work Cas open, his own arousal rising just from watching Cas writhe on top of him and listening to the way Cas whimpered and cried for him.

"Gorgeous," Dean groaned, pushing in a third finger and increasing his pace, forcing it up into Cas and earning louder and sharper out bursts. "You're ready," Dean pulled his hand away, leaving Cas empty and displeased for a second. He wiped whatever lube there was remaining on his hands onto his cock before thrusting up, just as Cas was pushing down.

Cas tensed and shouted expletives from the sudden pressure. He moved slowly at first, pushing down as hard as he could to see how deep Dean could go, how full he could be. "I…" Cas gasped as he started moving a little faster. "I wouldn't do anything differently either, if given the choice." He moaned loudly and quickened his pace a little more. "I love you, Dean."

Dean dug his fingers into Cas' hips as his lover took over; thrusting up to help Cas get everything he needed. "I love you too, Cas." He barely managed to say through the ecstasy. "Oh god I love you." He reached between them and started stroking the aching, swollen cock he'd forbidden Cas from.

Cas squirmed and whimpered, his momentum shuddering to a stop for a brief second, at least until Dean thrust up again to keep him going. Cas picked it up again, clenching his ass to give Dean a little more as well.

Dean arched his back, shoulders digging into the seat, as he couldn't hold off any longer. As he came he felt a warm splash on his chest and almost thought that somehow he'd come on himself and not in Cas, though that'd be stupid especially since Cas was screaming his name and shaking through an orgasm.

The moments after were spent catching their breath, Cas shlucking off of Dean's limp cock and lying down next to/on top of him. "That was amazing…" Cas said tiredly, his eyes closed in a sort of post high daze.

Dean smiled and fumbled in the mess of clothing on the floor, finding his pants and feeling out the pockets. "You know what would be even more amazing?"

"Hm?" Cas didn't even open his eyes to hum out an answer.

"If you'd spend the rest of your life with me." Dean lifted up a small box just in time for Cas' eyes to snap open and see it there. "Will you marry me, Castiel?"

"Oh my…" Cas stared at the box as Dean flipped it open, revealing a gorgeous engagement ring studded with diamonds and one beautiful aquamarine in the center, Cas' birthstone. "Yes…" he whispered breathlessly, tears rushing to his eyes, "Oh my god, yes!" He wrapped his arms around Dean and buried his face against his chest.

Dean smiled and took Cas' left hand, slipping the ring onto it easily. "Thank you, Cas."

Cas sobbed happily, unable to speak so he just continued to hug Dean, instead.

* * *

Their wedding day wasn't too far off; Castiel was pretty impatient about it and demanded sooner rather than later. They wore matching tuxedos except Cas' was white, Sam had flown back specially for the occasion and of course they made sure that Michael was the ring-bearer. Sam stood proudly as Cas' best man, and Jet was Dean's of course; Cas and Dean didn't need more than one on either side of them, after all.

The ceremony was official; they behaved themselves as any self-respecting adult would. However the after party was just as you'd expect to be at Dean and Cas' wedding, drinking, dancing, and awesome tunes. Their first dance together was slow and careful, though mostly that was because Michael wanted in on it and they both held one of his hands to lead him through it.

Jet smiled as he watched them dance, "I can't believe this is the same weirdo kid I met outside my house."

"Well start believing it, because it's true." Sam reached over and took Jet's hand, "Have you… thought about it?"

Jet looked over at him and then back at Dean, contemplating it. "Yeah, I've thought about it." He let Sam wait for his answer for a moment, feeling the light squeeze on his hand.

"And?" Sam asked cautiously, unable to hide the anxiety in his voice.

"And the answer's yes." Jet smiled at him, "I'll come back with you."

Sam let out a relieved and incredibly happy sigh, immediately going around the table to hug his boyfriend. "Thank you." He whispered.

Jet smiled and held Sam close, "No problem." He said softly, glancing up at the happy dancing family and smiling a little more.

That night, much later that night while Cas and Sam were together happily chiding over the day's events, Jet stood outside staring up at the sky as if it'd give him everything he'd ever wanted. He smirked, remembering when he used to do exactly this, expecting the heavens to smite his parents for ever laying a hand on him.

"Lost in thought?" Dean walked up beside him.

"Kinda…" Jet looked over at Dean and shrugged, "I'm going to be heading to California with Sam when he goes back." He explained, looking back up at the stars though the moon usually drew his attention in.

"I thought you might." Dean nodded and was surprised how much that saddened him. "You should be with Sam."

"I decided to go because you're finally okay." Jet turned to face him, his face more serious than Dean had seen it in a while. "You don't need me like you used to, you can stand on your own. I mean hell, man, you've settled down with someone and you're taking care of a kid. I've never seen you so well adjusted."

Dean smiled, "Yeah, I guess. But that doesn't mean I don't want you around."

"Of course you want me around, I've been your only family for as long as you've known me, and likewise you've been mine. We've seen the same shit and we've fought through it all together. But I'm not leaving, I'm going until Sam's done school and then I'm hauling his lawyer ass back this way. I don't care if it's a smaller office or not as prestigious, I'm dragging him back. So it'll just be a 'see you later' kind of thing." Jet leaned over and pulled Dean into a hug, holding him there for a minute. "I love you, man."

"Love you too." Dean smiled and stepped back after Jet let go, "Thanks for everything."

"And thank you," Jet grinned, "Now let's get back in there and get our drunk partners out of here so we can go home and hit that."

"Hell yeah, m'ang."

"M'ang." The fist bumped with the stupidest smiles and walked back into the building.

Life for the Winchesters was a little brighter than it seemed back in high school, Cas was no longer looking for random men in a bar he shouldn't be in and Sam was far from the emotionally damaged wreck he'd made himself out to be. They both had a man to call theirs and evidently got a life that they both wanted, Cas worked during the days and spent his time with Dean and Michael while Sam became the best lawyer he'd fought so hard to be.

And of course Mary got to wear normal, feminine clothing again. That's what really counts here.


	21. Epilogue

Checking his phone, still ten more minutes.

…It had to have been ten minutes by now, check again. Nope, eight more minutes.

…Tap pen anxiously against the desk. When would this old fart stop talking already?

Tapped his pen several more times and checked his phone again; five more minutes.

When the hell would this day end?

He would have groaned in frustration but he knew that would probably mean staying after again and wouldn't that just ruin the rest of his day.

After an eternity the bell rang and he bolted. "FREEDOM!" he shouted.

"You'll be back in a few days!" The teacher called after him with a sort of triumphant and knowing tone.

Michael slowed his run and rolled his eyes, of course he would be back, his older brother wouldn't let him drop out even if he wanted to. Regardless, it was Friday and he was free, at least for a little while. That night marked the anniversary of the day Dean and Cas saved his life, and since no one really knew when his birthday really was, this day had been given to him instead. Something awesome always happened on his birthday, the year before they'd taken him on a day trip to see a concert he'd been begging for, the year before that he'd been given a Play Station and a shit load of games that they spent the day playing. This time his birthday was the start of a weekend, something epic must have been planned, he was certain of it.

"Have a good weekend, Michael." His friend called from the front doors of his high school.

"You too." Michael raised a hand and waved back when he heard the familiar sound of a Chevrolet Impala pulling up behind him, Stairway to Heaven blasting from its speakers and out the open windows (a song that he understood was  _their_  song). Michael grinned and turned to look at his ride, his pseudo-dad's arm resting out the window, that awesome super-model stare pinned on him. The image was only completed when his big brother leaned over to look as well, large sunglasses shielding his eyes and a good portion of his face from sight, mimicking the expression he knew that Dean would have.

Michael booked it across the parking lot to meet them, knuckle-bumping Dean as he approached and hopped into the back seat. In their family it didn't matter who gave birth to you and it didn't matter who raised you, what matters is who you keep around you and who you choose to be.

And though the rule was never enforced in their family, Dean made sure to always eat his vegetables.


End file.
